Hanging on the Edge
by Open Casket Ceremony
Summary: When Hitsugaya is deployed on a suicide mission and kidnapped by Aizen, Ichigo has to save him no matter what, even if he has to overcome nightmarishly impossible odds. Soul Society, his life, and Hitsugaya's fate are all hanging on the edge. IchiHitsu.
1. Unspoken

Author's Note: So lately, I've been _super_ busy, school is getting more and more demanding as you can probably tell by my utter lack of update since September aside from an occasional one-shot every now and then. I'm going to try to start up a fresh new fic, but I don't know if I'll ever have time to finish it. We'll just see what happens for now. Also, I'm really sorry. I'm very uncreative, so sorry if my plots get repetitive. I know this one is.

* * *

Being in a state of war, everyone in Soul Society was busy.

Even Matsumoto hadn't found the time to have her weekly drinking parties lately, because she was constantly occupied helping her captain take care of administrative business. Not even the workaholic young taichou could handle the work load that had been pouring into the tenth division office.

Records of casualties had to be made, mission reports had to be filled out, letters of apology had to be sent to the families of all the men and women who had been lost in what seemed like a never-ending war.

Tenth division seemed to be one of the worst off. Hitsugaya sometimes wondered to himself why he had so readily agreed to take on the fifth division's paperwork as well. This had doubled his already large burden, and the load was growing bigger and bigger as each day passed.

Yet, even in all this madness, Hitsugaya was often able to find solace in the brash young substitute shinigami, Kurosaki Ichigo. Despite their differences, the strawberry was always more than eager to visit the icy captain in times of stress and even help out with the paper work.

Although normally quiet, Hitsugaya felt perfectly at ease around Ichigo and was able to tell him anything and everything about what happened each day. And despite his loud and obnoxious personality, Ichigo made a good listener.

As the days passed, the young captain of the tenth division had secretly grown rather fond of the substitute shinigami. He didn't have the nerve, or the will, to tell him though. Ever since Kusaka had died, he finally felt like there was someone out there who understood him and cared enough to treat him like any other person, not like a prodigy or a captain. He was content to stay just friends though; he was grateful for that much. He didn't mind if they could never be anything more. As long as he could be by his side and watch him fight, watch his antics, listen to his warm, comfortable voice…he was satisfied.

Thoughts like these would often cross Hitsugaya's mind as he carried on with the mundane paperwork.

He flipped open another page, a soft sigh escaping his lips as his bored teal eyes moved languidly across the rows of kanji.

He was alone in his office at the moment. Matsumoto had been out on some errands.

"Hitsugaya-taichou."

At the sound of his name, Hitsugaya looked up from his paperwork and over his desk to see a messenger, who instantly dropped to one knee with a lowered gaze as was expected of one in the presence of a captain.

"Yes?" he answered, "What is it?"

"This is a message from the sotaichou," was the messenger's answer as he rose back to his feet, producing a sealed, folded sheet of paper. "It contains classified information," he continued in a low voice, "Please read it carefully."

"I understand," Hitsugaya answered quietly, taking the message.

"If you'll excuse me, sir."

The prodigy nodded briefly, and in a flash of movement, the messenger was gone.

Looking around to make sure no one was near, Hitsugaya slowly turned the sheet over in his hands, the slender, delicate fingers moving to unfold the paper to reveal the message contained within.

He scanned the message, blinking.

_You have been chosen to be deployed to Hueco Mundo tomorrow morning alongside a few other selected subordinates of yours. We feel that your abilities will best suit the conditions of this mission. You will be debriefed on the requirements for this mission before you depart tomorrow morning.  
However, please note that this mission is extremely dangerous and there is a 95% rate of failure with consequences. Should you return alive with the mission completed, your efforts will be of tremendous aid to Soul Society in this war. To be able to carry out this mission is a privilege and you should be honored to have been selected.  
Declining this mission is not an option.  
This mission is strictly top-secret and sharing information with any others not concerned will result in capital punishment.  
We will be expecting you in the fourth division office no later than 5:00 sharp tomorrow morning. _

He read the note again, stunned speechless.

A ninety-five percent failure rate.

That meant that the odds were against him. He only had a five-percent chance of making it out alive.

In other words, he was being drafted on a suicide mission.

Hitsugaya swallowed, his grip on the note tightening the slightest. He would not be afraid, he told himself. After all, this _was_ a privilege. Such dangerous missions were only given to the strongest shinigami officers. Should he die in the process, he would die in honor.

He found his mind wandering back to Kurosaki Ichigo.

Would this mean that he wouldn't see him again?

A sudden, loud, sing-song voice interrupted his thoughts.

"Oh, Toshirooo!"

A moment later, the office doors burst open, and in sprang the very strawberry he had been thinking about at that exact moment, a triumphant, self-satisfied grin on his face.

"Kurosaki?" Hitsugaya blinked in surprise. Hastily, he shoved the message into his desk drawer.

"Still working?" Ichigo asked, crossing the room towards the young captain. "Isn't it about time for your break or something? C'mon, I want to talk to you."

"I'm sorry, Kurosaki, I don't have time to rest right now," Hitsugaya sighed, moving on to the next sheet of paperwork, picking up the brush again. "There's a lot of things I need to take care of. Matsumoto hasn't been able to help today. I've sent her out on some errands."

"Then I'll help," Ichigo offered.

"Don't trouble yourself. I'll take care of it."

"Are you sure you can't take a break?" the substitute shinigami persisted, "I need to talk to you."

"Then talk."

"No, that's not what I mean," he answered, "I need to _talk_ to you. One-on-one. Like…you know. A real talk. I've been thinking for a while, and I've thought of something that I think I need to tell you."

"Is it important?"

Ichigo nodded.

"Fine," Hitsugaya answered, setting the brush down, "But try and make it quick, will you?"

"I'll try," Ichigo replied.

There was a brief pause before the strawberry-blonde teen finally blurted out in a garbled string of words in rapid succession, "Uh-I've-been-thinking-for-a-while-Toshiro-and-it's-been-like-this-for-a-while-but-I-figured-I-might-as-well-tell-you-now-and-uh-I-think-you're-really-pretty-and-I-really-really-really-like-you-and-I-don't-mean-that-in-a-you-know-like-you-like-a-friend-way-but-kind-of-more-than-that-you-know?"

Hitsugaya blinked, his eyes narrowing.

"I can't understand a word you're saying, Kurosaki. What are you blathering about anyway? Say it again. And slower this time, please."

"Ah…" Ichigo mumbled, his face flushing a livid shade of beet red. "Well…uh, you know…Don't laugh at me, okay? But I…"

"You…?"

"I can't do this," the strawberry mumbled sullenly, "You're going to think I'm stupid."

"You've already started," Hitsugaya answered impatiently, "And you might as well finish. What is it that's so important that you need to say to me?"

"It's just that people are wrong about you," Ichigo answered, his face getting redder and redder, "You're really not a grumpy little party-pooper…I think you're tons of fun and you're really nice, and everyone already thinks you're super pretty, but…I really like you, Toshiro."

The silence that followed was so awkward that both of them wanted to die.

"Kurosaki…"

"And, uh," the strawberry mumbled, "I was kind of wondering if you'd, um…you know. Go out with me."

Hitsugaya's face remained expressionless, although on the inside was an entirely different story. _He __**likes**__ me,_ the prodigy thought to himself, _He wants to go out with me…?_

He would have accepted if the note he had received a few minutes ago had not crossed his mind.

_This mission is extremely dangerous and there is a 95% rate of failure with consequences._

He bit his lip. Why did this have to happen now? There was no way he could bring himself to say "yes" like the strawberry hoped he would. What would the point be? He was probably going to die soon anyway. Why make Ichigo suffer as well?

He inhaled deeply before taking a poker face that quickly hid his frustration.

"I will not," he responded icily. "I'm afraid to say that I don't feel the same way about you. You're little more to me than a person to chat occasionally with. I have no desire to go anywhere beyond that."

Ichigo's face fell, his chocolate eyes casting downwards.

"Kurosaki, I…" Hitsugaya began, his voice wavering. He hated to turn the strawberry down and lie to him. But this was the only way to ensure that if he died, there would be no suffering or grieving on Ichigo's part. "I'm so sorry."

"No, it's fine," Ichigo mumbled without looking at Hitsugaya, "If that's how you feel, then I guess it's not my business to try to change your mind."

"You may leave now," the captain murmured, looking downwards so Ichigo would not have to see his face. He couldn't take it anymore. But he had to keep pretending.

"Why didn't you tell me in the first place?" Ichigo asked, rising to his feet. "If you really can't stand me…why didn't you tell me? You really didn't have to act like you cared."

"Th-That's not what I meant," Hitsugaya protested, looking back up, horrorstruck. "I like being with you, Kurosaki. I really do. It's just that…"

"Make up your damn mind already," Ichigo responded fiercely, the biting edge to his voice making the young prodigy's hear sink. "Don't lie to me because you feel bad."

"Kurosaki, _please_."

"I'll see you around," he muttered, turning away and leaving the office in such a hurry that he was gone in a moment, leaving Hitsugaya opening and closing his mouth, staring wide-eyed at the empty space where he had been moments before.

Slowly, with trembling hands, he opened the drawer and took the note back out, folding it back up again and slipping it into the folds of his robes.

It didn't matter anymore. Nothing mattered. It wasn't like he was going to live to make any more impressions on the strawberry anyway.


	2. Welcome to Hell!

Author's Note: Hurrah, I actually had time to move on to chapter two! Let us see how things play out with our heroes now, shall we? Will Ichigo ever find out about the mission? Will Hitsugaya make it out alive? You'll have to wait to find out, heheheh. This chapter will be mostly centered around Hitsugaya, though.

* * *

Hueco Mundo.

Dry, barren, and deserted.

Come to think of it, Hitsugaya realized it was a lot like his own plain of ice. Except there was the fact that there was hardly any moisture at all in the air, and instead of ice and snow, he was walking on dead, gray sand.

This made him wonder, what the hell was he doing here again?

He remembered vaguely being debriefed about the mission objective and time frame. Basically, in two days, he and a few subordinates were to infiltrate Las Noches and gather information on the abilities of the Espada, then analyze them and figure out a way to counter them.

That meant he'd have to fight all ten of them, survive long enough to see all of their releases, and escape intact,

If he wasn't captured or killed first.

Now he knew why this mission was classified and so dangerous – he was practically being sent to a painful and extended death. Making his way through the dimensional gate that had led them from Soul Society to Hueco Mundo had felt like a walk to the gallows.

"Be careful," he murmured, turning to the three subordinates that had been instructed to accompany him, "Follow my lead and don't attack unless I command you to."

"Yes, sir."

With a sigh, the young captain turned back around to face forward. "Las Noches should be a half-day's walk from here," he said, "But we should take it slow so we don't waste our energy or strength. We're going to need it later."

And so they walked.

And walked.

And walked.

The dry air was soon taking its toll on the wielder of Soul Society's strongest ice-type zanpakuto, and despite the little effort it took to walk, Hitsugaya soon found himself gasping for breath and struggling to breathe.

He faltered, coughing with a hand pressed to his chest, panting heavily.

Why the hell did he, out of all people, have to be deployed to this damn desert of all places?

"Hitsugaya-taichou!"

"Are you alright, Hitsugaya-taichou?"

"I'm fine," he murmured as his subordinates rushed to his side, moving to support their pretty young captain. "It…It's nothing. We should keep moving."

That was when he suddenly felt it.

A crushing, foul reiatsu that nearly knocked him off balance.

Shouting in confused panic, he could see his subordinates falling on all sides, overwhelmed by the massive reiatsu.

Hitsugaya's grip on the front of his robes tightened against his chest until his knuckles had turned a ghastly shade of white to rival his hair.

Then, it hit him.

He couldn't breathe.

He felt as if the air moving into his lungs was being snatched away before it could reach its destination. Gasping for breath, he choked. He felt as if his chest was being squeezed and crushed by a huge hand. Panting, the boy wheezed helplessly, his sight beginning to blur as dark spots swam in his vision.

As he looked up, his blood instantly ran cold.

He knew that face, That face of a figure who had suddenly appeared before them. The smugly smiling source of this foul reiatsu…Aizen Sosuke himself.

"A…Aizen…"

"Looks like you're having trouble there, Hitsugaya-kun," the traitor smiled, speaking in a smooth, even voice as he took a step forward.

With a whimper, he weakly sank to his knees in the dark sand, still struggling for breath.

"Hitsugaya-taichou!" one of his subordinates cried out, starting forward.

"No! Stay back-"

It was too late.

There was the sickening sound of flesh being torn apart, and the next instant later, hot, crimson blood splattered across the sand, a few drops landing on the horrified captain's face, hands, and clothes, as well as the ones of his remaining subordinates.

With a shriek of pain, the shinigami fell to the floor, his midsection torn open.

Eyes wide and rigid with shock, Hitsugaya glanced from his fallen subordinate back up to Aizen. The man had barely even moved. _Shit_. The mission hadn't even technically started yet, and already, they were in some really, really, really deep shit.

Hitsugaya forced himself forward, moving to the aid of his fatally wounded subordinate. Maybe, if he focused a good amount of reiatsu into it, he'd still be able to save the man's life.

Before he could reach the injured shinigami, Aizen intercepted, shunpo'ing between them. The white-haired boy didn't even have time to react as with terrifying speed, the ex-captain of the fifth division reached forward and seized him by his snow-colored locks.

"Let me go, you bastard!" he demanded, struggling wildly, emitting a pitiful yelp of pain as the man gave the locks he had a hold on a hard twist. He reached for Hyorinmaru, only to find Aizen's free hand shooting forward to grab both his wrists, preventing him from using his hands.

"Don't touch me!" he shrieked, hysterical, struggling wildly to wrench free from captor's iron grip, but to no avail. He had to get to his bleeding subordinate now, or it would soon be too late to do anything about his wounds. "Let go of me!"

He looked into the man's maddeningly satisfied eyes, trying to pull away from him with an angry snarl. But it felt like Aizen's very gaze was sucking the life out of him. His eyes were wide as saucers as Aizen released his wrists, which fell limply to his sides.

He couldn't move.

"On your knees, Hitsugaya-kun," Aizen ordered calmly. Hitsugaya didn't move, and with his hand still holding onto his hair, the traitor forced the defenseless boy back onto his knees in the sand.

"You…You son of a bitch…" he choked out, only to be answered to with a swift backhand across the face, a small gasp of pain escaping his lips.

"Let go of Hitsugaya-taichou, you monster!" one of the remaining subordinates shouted, drawing his katana upon seeing their captain being degraded before their eyes.

Aizen raised an eyebrow.

This subordinate, too, was dead before he could even blink. Now two bloody corpses were strewn on the blood-tainted desert sand.

"One more little insect to take care of," Aizen smiled, his gaze turning to the last one of Hitsugaya's subordinates left alive.

"What do you want with Hitsugaya-taichou!?" he demanded, "Release him!"

"What do I want?" Aizen repeated. "Unlike you, Hitsugaya-kun interests me quite a bit," he answered smoothly, "He has power I want…and he's quite the little beauty, don't you agree?"

"You…"

"Enough chit-chat. Now, you can go die, too-"

"N-No!" Hitsugaya spluttered, "Let him live Aizen, I beg of you…Please, don't hurt him."

A wide smile spread across the traitor's face. "Very well then, since Hitsugaya-kun wishes it so deeply, I will let you live," he spoke, facing the shinigami. "Go back to that miserable cockroach hole you call the Seireitei and tell those other worthless insects that their precious, pretty little tenth division captain…belongs to me now."

Then, slowly and deliberately, Aizen reached down to the sash that held Hyorinmaru across Hitsugaya's back, his fingers stopping at the small, sun-shaped pin that fastened it in place.

"What an interesting little item," he mused, "I wonder where you could have gotten it…It looks quite pricey. A family heirloom, perhaps? No, a little boy from the Rukongai wouldn't even dream of being able to touch something like this, let alone have it in his family. Maybe you stole it? No, Hitsugaya-kun, you are much too dignified to be a thief."

"Don't touch it," Hitsugaya managed to snarl through gritted teeth.

The smirk on the traitor's face widened.

"What, does it mean that much to you?" he inquired in a sickeningly smooth tone. "I see where you got it now. You received it as gift, didn't you?" He leaned downwards until his lips were right next to Hitsugaya's ear before continuing in a low, smug whisper, "A gift from a lover…that Kusaka Sojiro, perhaps?"

Hitsugaya didn't answer.

How he hated this man, how he despised him to the very core. He hated everything about him, from the unpleasant, eerie cold he felt whenever he touched him, to the sickeningly smug way he seemed to know exactly what he was thinking and just how to get on his nerves. How to scare the hell out of him, and how mercilessly he did it.

"You don't want to talk to me, I see," Aizen finally spoke. "Well, then I guess you have no more need for this little trinket."

His hold on the pin tightened, and in a swift, fluid motion, he tore it from the sash, the green material falling gracefully to the sand, Hyorinmaru following soon after with a dull thud.

"Take this back to your superiors as my evidence that their little tenth division captain is still alive and well," Aizen spoke, his tone hardening as he addressed the only surviving subordinate, who seemed rooted to the spot with terror. He threw the pin at the subordinate's feet, the smile never leaving his face. "…But tell them that it might not stay like that for very long."


	3. The News

Author's Note: Eh, I kind of thought the last chapter was pretty cheesy. Tell me what you think and whether or not I really should continue working on this fic, please. This is also probably going to be my last fic, as unfortunately, I've realized that I'm slowly losing interest in Bleach, and anime in general.

* * *

Meanwhile, back in Soul Society, the captains were assembling for the daily meeting.

Ukitake was the first to notice that the two rows were uneven, and that one of the captains was not present. After a brief scan of the room, he could instantly conclude who it was that was not there to join them.

"Hitsugaya-taichou is always punctual," he commented aloud, "So why is he not…?"

"We discussed this the last time we assembled," was the sotaichou's quick answer. "You were not feeling well, so you were not present to hear about Hitsugaya-taichou's deployment to Hueco Mundo."

"By himself?"

"Rest assured, Ukitake-taichou, he was accompanied by two of his subordinates."

"That doesn't matter!" Ukitake protested, "Hitsugaya-taichou may be a captain-ranked officer, but he is still only a child. Sending him to Hueco Mundo like that…you may as well have him sentenced to death!"

"Don't worry, Ukitake-taichou," the old man replied calmly, "Hitsugaya-taichou is an extremely capable fighter. That was why I chose him for this mission. He'll be fine, I'm sure."

The irony of this statement was instantly apparent.

"S-Sotaichou!"

At that moment, the doors burst open, revealing the bloody and battered subordinate, who, only a few hours ago, had been by his captain's side in Hueco Mundo.

"What is the meaning of this, barging in on a captain's meeting?" Yamamoto demanded sternly, "You should know better than that. Speaking of which, your return is earlier than we projected it would be. Where are Hitsugaya-taichou and the others?"

Panting, the subordinate slowly raised Hitsugaya's sun-shaped pin into the air for the sotaichou to see, still attached to the tattered remnants of the green sash.

"Isn't that…?" the alarmed Ukitake began.

"I repeat," Yamamoto stated slowly, "Where are they?"

"D-Dead…"

"All of them?"

"No," was the quivering response, "H-Hitsugaya-taichou was…was…He was…"

"Yes?"

"…He was taken by Aizen."

The room was instantly filled with an uproar, before finally; the sotaichou raised his hand for silence.

"We are in a grave situation indeed," he spoke, "If we are to go to send another captain to Hueco Mundo to rescue Hitsugaya-taichou, it would be a dangerous job and we cannot afford to lose anymore captains during this war. If we are to leave the situation be, I suspect that Hitsugaya-taichou may be forced to tell Aizen of our plans, or even, to use Hyorinmaru against us."

"So what do we do?" Ukitake inquired.

"There's only one person we can turn to at this time to retrieve our missing captain," he answered calmly.

"Send a message to Urahara Kisuke in the real world to inform the substitute shinigami, Kurosaki Ichigo, that we, once again, are in imperative need of his aid."

* * *

Back in the real world, after receiving a call from Urahara, Ichigo had promptly made his way from the Kurosaki clinic to Urahara's shop.

Truth be told, he was feeling quite glum at the moment. Glum, in fact, was an understatement. He felt humiliated and just plain stupid to have so recklessly blurted out his feelings to the icy little captain of the tenth division, only to be promptly rejected.

He was just so fed up with everything that he didn't want to deal with shinigami anymore.

"What do you want, Urahara-san?" he demanded as he slid open the shop door, stepping inside. "Make it fast. My dad wants me to help him out at the clinic."

"I've been waiting for you for an hour, Kurosaki-san," the man spoke from behind his fan, "It's unlike you to be so late. Are you preoccupied, perhaps?"

"Not really," was the strawberry's answer, "I've just been thinking about some stuff."

"Your 'stuff' can wait," Urahara replied, "Soul Society gave me the word that they need your help right now, with the war and all."

There was a long silence.

"Tell them I'm busy," he muttered, "I don't want to go back to Soul Society, ever."

"And why not?"

"I don't want anything to do with soul reapers anymore."

"And why is that?"

"It's not any of your business," Ichigo snapped, "Look, Urahara-san, the more I think about all this shinigami stuff, the more it'll make me think of Toshi – I mean, something else. I don't want to have to anymore. I have a life, here, in the real world. This is where I belong. Not up there with those soul reapers. _This_ life is the one I need to be living."

"It's a shame you feel that way," Urahara spoke, snapping the fan shut. "Soul Society is in a huge pickle right now, and you don't want to help them?"

"…No."

"You see, Kurosaki-san," Urahara continued, "They've been put in a tight spot, and either action they choose to take will cost them quite a lot. All this trouble's centered around an incident that happened two nights ago."

"What incident?" Ichigo demanded, curious. "What happened?"

"I thought you didn't want anything to do with the soul reapers anymore," he chuckled smugly, "But if you are that curious, I guess I will tell you."

"Well, what is it then?"

Urahara's usually nonchalant tone hardened, becoming more serious in a flash.

"Why, it's concerning the kidnapping in Hueco Mundo of the tenth division taichou…Hitsugaya Toshiro."

At these words, Ichigo's heart felt like it had just turned to ice.

"Wh-What did you say…?"

"No one told you?" Urahara answered in mock surprise, "Two nights ago, our little prodigy was sent off to Hueco Mundo to collect information. He disappeared shortly after, taken by Aizen. The last person to see him alive brought _this_ back."

He held out his hand, extending the pin and torn green sash to the horrorstruck strawberry. Rigid with dread, Ichigo slowly reached out to take the recovered item in his hands, staring at it in dumbstruck silence.

"A captain of the opposite party during wartime is more valuable than you'd imagine," the shop owner continued, "They get let in on all sorts of little wartime secrets. Secrets that the enemy wants in on. Hitsugaya-taichou is a special little captain, though. A child prodigy, they call him. There's a legend in Soul Society a long time ago, there was a heavenly guardian of ice with peerless beauty and immense power. Anyhow, this guardian fell in love with a human from the real world. This of course, was forbidden, so the poor guardian was put to death. The laws have changed over time, of course, but supposedly, a new incarnation of him will return to Soul Society every few centuries to search for the form of his lost lover in their next lives."

"What are you telling me these stupid stories for!?" Ichigo shouted, "I want to know why they let this happen!"

"Listen to me first," Urahara demanded sternly. He cleared his throat, signifying that he intended to finish telling the story. "Like I mentioned before, it is said that this guardian possesses incredible power that could turn entire dimensions to ice and wipe them out in the blink of an eye. If you have this power on your side, think of how invincible you could become. All you need to know is how to get the guardian to use this power – that is, for the little guardian to receive a kiss on the lips from a so-called 'true love,' that is, the incarnation of his former lover…cheesy, I know, but true."

"So what? What does this have to do with anything?"

"Kurosaki-san…It is also said that the guardian will return in the form of a child with eyes like ice, hair like snow…and, obviously, of unsurpassable beauty. Does this sound like Hitsugaya-taichou to you?"

Slowly, Ichigo nodded.

"This is a secret that has been kept from little Hitsugaya-kun for fear he might figure out how to harness this power and unintentionally destroy the Soul Society," he continued, "I trust you know the story behind Hitsugaya-kun's first love…that Kusaka Sojiro guy?"

"Yeah, he told me all about it himself a while ago," Ichigo mused.

"Why do you think they had him killed?"

"Because it was the law," was the prompt reply. "Something about twin zanpakuto's not being allowed?"

"Yes and no," Urahara answered, "This little law was only to give them a reason to kill Kusaka Sojiro, because they were afraid that Hitsugaya-kun's power might accidentally become released in the process. Hitsugaya-kun didn't know about it, and neither did Kusaka Sojiro…"

He paused, before continuing again.

"But Aizen most definitely knows. He will undoubtedly do whatever it takes to force our little captain to release this power for him. And you know what kind of a man Aizen is…he will show no mercy to Hitsugaya-kun."


	4. Resolve

Author's Note: Oh my, I'm actually writing more than I expected I would…I'm feeling pretty proud of myself, hahaha. Anyway, here's the next chapter. Sorry if the plot is cheesy and clichéd. Oh well. That's too bad, I guess?

* * *

"So, what will it be, Kurosaki-san?" Urahara mused aloud, "Are you going to keep moping around saying you don't want to affiliate yourself with Soul Society anymore? Are you really going to let Aizen have his way with poor, frightened, lonely Hitsugaya-kun all by himself in big, scary Hueco Mundo? Or are you going to do something about it?"

"I already told you, Urahara-san," Ichigo answered slowly, swallowing hard. "I don't want to have to face him again."

"Who?"

"_Toshiro_," he answered heatedly, "That's why I don't want anything to do with soul reapers anymore. I'd end up crossing paths with _him _again. He thinks I'm…He hates me. He can't stand me, he said so himself. Why would I want to go into the trouble of rescuing a brat like that?"

"You should consider an acting career, Kurosaki-kun," the shop owner snorted sarcastically, "I can see right through your words. You visit it him all the time, don't you? I know how you feel about the boy, just by the tone you use when you talk about him. It's softer."

"Shut up, you don't know anything."

"Kurosaki-san, do you love Hitsugaya-kun?"

"If I did, it wouldn't matter," Ichigo answered in a low voice, "He obviously doesn't feel the same way, so what's the point?"

"Don't be stupid, Kurosaki-kun. Weren't you listening?"

"Yeah…?"

"I said the kidnapping incident occurred two nights ago. The previous day would have been when you told Hitsugaya-kun you fancied him."

"Hey, how did you know I said that!?" Ichigo blurted, mortified.

"Oh, I have my sources," Urahara replied smugly, "But that's beyond the point. He received the mission orders the same day you spoke to him…didn't you notice how upset he was? Of course he couldn't tell you how he really felt."

"How would you know? It wasn't like you were there."

"I already told you, I have sources."

"Sources my ass, you're just making stuff up."

"Sources," Urahara insisted, "I have sources. But that's not the point. The point is, are you going to get him out of there…or do you really not love him? Maybe you just like him because he has a pretty face. My, how shallow of you."

"He wouldn't want me to go after him. It'd just be an insult if I did."

"Don't you get it yet?" the shop owner urged, "This is what Aizen wants. He wants you to not come try to rescue him, and he wants Hitsugaya-kun to know as well. The less hope there seems to be, the easier it will be to break him."

There was a long pause before Ichigo finally answered through clenched teeth,

"Then I'll prove that bastard wrong."

"So does that mean you agree to it?"

"Shut up already! I'll do it!" Ichigo snapped angrily, standing up. "Urahara-san, sorry to trouble you, but I'll need to get to Hueco Mundo as soon as you can get me there. So can you do me a favor and open a pathway?"

"I certainly can," Urahara answered cheerily, "Now _this_ sounds more like you, Kurosaki-san! It would have been so much easier if you hadn't tried to put up that little act and just said you'd go save him in the first place."

"…Shut up. Just hurry up and get to it."

* * *

Hitsugaya opened his eyes.

He blinked hard. He must have passed out a while ago.

_Please,_ he begged in his mind, _please let this all have been a dream. _

As his vision slowly cleared, he scanned the room with the slightest hope he'd be safe and warm back in Soul Society. Unfortunately, this was most definitely not the case. The fact that he was far away from the comforts of his office and lying on the cold, stone floor of Las Noches was the reality.

"I see you're awake, Hitsugaya-kun."

The young captain nearly jumped out of his skin upon hearing Aizen's voice.

"Did I startle you?" Aizen chuckled, kneeling next to the terrified boy. He reached down to ruffle the white locks, and instinctively upon the unwanted contact, Hitsugaya drew back.

"There's no need to be afraid," Aizen said, "I won't hurt you right now."

"What do you want with me?" Hitsugaya demanded angrily, "If you want me to tell you about Soul Society's plans for the war, you're wasting your time. I'll die before I tell you a word."

"Oh, no, I don't need that petty information," he answered smoothly.

"Then you have no reason to keep me here," Hitsugaya snarled, "I demand you release me."

"I want to tell you a story, Hitsugaya-kun. I suggest you listen," Aizen replied calmly. "It's said by many soul reapers that there exists a guardian of winter who possesses an enormous amount of power. This guardian reincarnates to Soul Society every few centuries, in the form of a child with icy eyes and snow-colored hair…"

He reached out, gently stroking the side of Hitsugaya's face in mock affection. Repulsed, Hitsugaya instantly shrank away from his touch.

"…And with unrivaled beauty."

"So? What are you telling me this for?"

"Oh, don't tell me you haven't figured it out already," Aizen chuckled, "Why else do you think I brought you here, Hitsugaya-kun? _You_ are that very guardian and _you_ are the one who has the power _I_ need and want. It's only a matter of time before you give it to me."

"What are you saying?" Hitsugaya demanded not sounding the least bit convinced, "I don't have any special powers, aside from within my zanpakuto, which _you_ took and _I _want back."

"Don't be so hasty," the ex-captain of the tenth division replied, "There's no need to be in any hurry. Like I said, it's only a matter of time before you'll be willing to give me your power. All the guardian needs…" he smirked, "…Is a kiss on the lips from their supposed 'true love,' or so they say."

Hitsugaya opened and closed his mouth, too horrified to speak.

Before he knew it, Aizen had seized his chin in one hand, jerking him forward and pressing his lips roughly against his.

With a disgusted yelp, Hitsugaya managed to wrench away. _The nerve of this perverted bastard, stealing my first kiss like that!_ he screamed in his mind. _Who the hell does he think he is?_

"Nothing?" Aizen mused with a raised eyebrow. "I guess you're not that into me right now, are you? No need to worry; that can be changed soon."

"That will be never!" Hitsugaya retorted, his voice cracking with disgust and fear. "What makes you think you can go around doing whatever you please to me!? I am _not _that 'guardian' or whatever you speak of in your childish fairytales, and even if I was, I will _never_ love someone, no – _something_ like you!"

"Don't be naive, Hitsugaya-kun," Aizen answered in a colder voice, grasping the white-haired boy's wrist. "You have no choice. Sojiro-kun is dead. Soul Society can't afford to send anyone to rescue you…except for that pathetic, shinigami-wannabe, Kurosaki Ichigo. They can only afford for trash like him to come here to try to save you and die a pitiful death."

"Don't you dare talk about Kurosaki like that!" Hitsugaya all but screamed, furious. "He's stronger than you'll ever be!"

"Getting touchy, are we? Are you fond of the boy?"

"Why do you care?"

"He's not going to come for you," Aizen chuckled, his grasp on the boy's wrist tightening, "So don't be counting on him to. Kurosaki Ichigo doesn't really have any feelings for you. How could such an uncultured oaf know how to truly appreciate an exquisite little beauty such as yourself?"

"Let _go_ of me!" the prodigy snarled, trying in vain to jerk free from Aizen's grasp. "What right do you have to touch me with your filthy, traitorous hands!?"

"There's really nothing special about that Kurosaki Ichigo," the ex-captain of the fifth division went on, completely ignoring the infuriated demands of the boy within his grasp. "So what if he has a little more reiatsu than the average shinigami? Like I said, he's not going to come for you. No one is. You may as well be a good boy and do as I ask."

"I'd rather die."

"There's no way you can return to Soul Society. They've given up on rescuing you long ago, and you were so quick to break our little strawberry's heart that he won't even consider trying to save you. You have no other options."

"Then you may as well just kill me now."

"Oh, no," Aizen beamed, "I wouldn't do such a thing. You see, Hitsugaya-kun, people like that Kurosaki Ichigo are low, insignificant creatures. They don't deserve the attention of such a rare beauty as yourself. I, on the other hand, am a king…the king of Hueco Mundo. Agree to become my queen and you will have anything you could ever want. Las Noches will be your home. My Espada will attend to your every need. Anything you desire will be yours."

"I refuse," Hitsugaya snarled, "All _you_ want is not me, but my power. Fine then, I wish you the best of luck trying to get it, because I _assure_ you, I will never, ever, willingly let you have it."

"We shall see about that, Hitsugaya-kun."


	5. Patience is a Virtue

Author's Note: Hurrah! On the next chapter already! Sorry, I already said that my plots were really repetitive, right? I realized that after I published it, so I guess it's too late now, haha. Anyway, keep giving me feedback. I want to make it at least a little different from my others...and don't worry, I _might_ reward readers with some M-rated material? Although, I've never done it before and I'm scared that it'll turn out weird and kill the story. So, what do you guys think? Do you want some, perhaps?

* * *

Hitsugaya could only stare at Aizen in a mute mixture of horror, disgust, and downright fear.

"What are you going to do with me?" he asked, his voice weak and barely a whisper, hardly any of its former authoritative tone left in it. "Let me go."

"I don't think so, Hitsugaya-kun," Aizen beamed, "You see, I brought you here for a reason. When I knew you were coming, I knew it would be my perfect chance to finally get my hands on the power that would let me destroy Soul Society...and get myself a pretty little queen while I was at it. Now, a chance like that doesn't come along all that often. To simply let you go and pass up the oppurtunity would be a terrible waste, wouldn't it?"

"You don't give up, do you? I already _told_ you-"

He was cut off as Aizen grabbed him roughly by the front of his robes, jerking him forward.

"Just because I don't plan on killing you anytime soon, Hitsugaya-kun," the traitor spoke in a sickeningly smooth and pleasant voice like poisoned honey, "Doesn't mean that I'll let you talk back to me like that anymore."

"Let go of me!" Hitsugaya hissed angrily, trying to jerk away, only to find Aizen merely pulling him up against him.

Horrified, the young prodigy tried to push himself away from the traitor's chest, only to find the man grasping both his wrists in one hand, while the other travelled to his rear end.

His face flushing a bright red, Hitsugaya's first fighting instinct was to kick the fucker in the balls. Hard. That would teach him to just try and touch him there again.

He raised his leg, ready to knee Aizen where it hurts most, but before any damage could be inflicted, he found himself being thrown the the floor with a painfully hard impact. He yelped in pain, trying to scramble away, kicking his legs furiously like a floundering fish to prevent this bastard from getting anywhere near him.

Now at this point, Aizen looked lik he was getting pretty pissed.

He caught one of the young captain's flailing legs, and with a stubborn yelp, Hitsugaya attempted to pull away.

He was mildly succesful. For one, the traitor wasn't holding onto his leg anymore. That, he was grateful for. But as he had wrenched his leg away, the fabric of his hakama had torn all the way up to his thighs, leaving the scrap of shredded fabric in the annoyed Aizen's hands.

Had it not been such a scary situation, and if Hitsugaya's slender legs were not now exposed for the world to see, it would have been a little funny.

With a startled gasp, the boy attempted pitifully to cover his bare legs, his face flushed in a panicked blush.

"Fine then," Aizen spoke, throwing the fabric scrap carelessly to the floor, "You look much better now, anyway."

"Pervert," Hitsugaya snarled through gritted teeth.

"That may be so," the traitor answered calmly, "But don't be counting on your luck next time, Hitsugaya-kun. Don't underestimate me. I'll make you mine in a matter of time."

"You wish."

Aizen turned at these words, slowly taking another step towards the frightened boy, who instinctively shrank back. The traitor reached downwards, seizing Hitsugaya by the front of his robes and jerking him to his feet so that they were eye-to-eye. Then, he spoke in a low, malicious whisper that sent a wave of fear washing through the terrified young captain's body.

_"Want to try me, Hitsugaya-kun?"_

* * *

"Can I go yet?" Ichigo demanded impatiently, his arms folded over his chest as he watched Urahara make some last-minute adjustments to the portal that would take the strawberry off to Hueco Mundo.

"Hasty, are we?" the shop owner teased, "And just a few minutes ago, you were insisting that you weren't going to go."

"Shut up and finish up faster!" Ichigo retorted.

"Calm down, calm down," Urahara answered, "It's ready now."

"Finally," the strawberry muttered as he adjsuted Zangetsu to a comfortable position over his back, preparing himself to make the jump.

"Wait a minute, Kurosaki-san. There's one more thing you need to know."

"And what would that be?"

"Soul Society has given you a time frame of only twenty-four hours," Urahara spoke, his usually nonchalant tone now serious. "So don't waste any time in there. Get the boy, and get _out_. Otherwise, Soul Society will send in back-up to force you to withdraw. Staying in Hueco Mundo for more than a day would be extremely risky at the moment."

"One day only?"

"I'll be tracking your reiatsu, Kurosaki-san, so if something goes wrong, we'll be able to tell. In a worst-case-scenario, backup would have to come in to pull you out, too."

"...And what about Toshiro?"

"You'll do what you can for him, Kurosaki-san. But if things don't go smoothly, we'll have no other choice but to withdraw and wait to see what happens next."

"Then I'll just have to make sure that I don't mess up," Ichigo muttered.

"Take this with you," Urahara added, holding out Hitsugaya's brooch, which he placed into Ichigo's outstreched hand. "Hitsugaya-san's reiatsu can still be felt on this, seeing it was in close proximity to his zanpaku-to before he was taken. It'll help you identify the right reiatsu, since there's a big mess of it in Hueco Mundo."

"Urhara-san, before I leave, can I ask you one favor?"

"Of course."

Ichigo took a deep breath, slowly turning away to face the open dimensional gate that was waiting for him to cross through in.

"If something _does_ go wrong, and backup doesn't come in quick enough to get me out...if something happens to me...Promise me you'll make sure they send someone else to save Toshiro."

"...I will."

_There's nothing to worry about,_ Ichigo told himself, _I've been to Hueco Mundo before to save Inoue. I just have to go in, find Toshiro, and get out. I'll go fast and avoid fights. I've got to save him. Because if I can't, then who knows what might happen to him..._

He shook his head furiously, trying to clear it of negative thoughts.

Biting his bottom lip in determination, he made the jump.

_Hang in there, Toshiro...just hang in there for a little longer. I'm coming for you. And I'll save you, definetely._


	6. Hopeless

Author's Note: Because of the quick response to the last chapter, I decided to whip up another chapter as fast as I could for you guys! Thanks for all the positive reviews. But I still need more opinions on whether or not you think I should include more "M-Rated" content, if you know what I mean. A fic like this would probably call for some, but I'm not sure if I should yet. So please, if you haven't already, give me your input on this! So then I won't suffer from as much writer's block in the future and be able to update faster!

* * *

Having already been to Hueco Mundo on one previous occasion, Ichigo already knew what he had to do to get through the portal that led from Urahara's basement to Hueco Mundo itself. He had to admit it was a lot easier than it had been last time, but the real job was going to be a lot tougher.

For one thing, he only had a day to do what he needed to get done.

That wasn't really a lot of time for something so dangerous.

And in Hueco Mundo, it was pretty hard to tell the time. He had constraints on this time, and the less he was able to keep track of it, the more stressed and more panicked he knew he would get.

Not to mention, who knew if he'd even live to use all that time.

"No way am I getting myself killed," Ichigo muttered to himself, as if he was giving himself a quick motivational pep talk, "If I get killed, then who's gonna save Toshiro? Wouldn't that be so awesome if I saved him?"

He blinked.

"No!" he snarled at himself furiously, "There's no _if,_ I'm _definetely_ gonna get him out of this place. And if I do save him, maybe he'll..."

What was he expecting from the boy in exchange for rescuing him?

It wasn't like Hitsugaya had asked him to come.

And it wasn't like he was going to be all _Kurosaki, thank you for saving me, you're my hero_. No, he wasn't that kind of person.

"Let's be realistic, Kurosaki Ichigo," the strawberry told himself as he continued to run, taking care to pace himself so he wouldn't overexert and waste energy. Then, he'd be too tired to do anything later, when it mattered the most. "It's not like I'll save him and he'll start swooning over me for being a hero or something. It's not like just because I came for him, he's going to fall in love with me...or something cheesy like that..." He then added as an afterthought, "Although, that wouldn't be a bad thing, either."

To be honest with himself, Ichigo was preparing to go unrewarded for this little rescue mission. He wasn't expecting to get anything out of this. As long as Hitsugaya was safe and sound, he'd be satisfied. That would be his reward.

* * *

With a soft groan of pain, Hitsugaya forced himself to open his eyes.

He wasn't sure how much time had passed since he had last seen Aizen.

All he remembered was the traitor grabbing him by the front of his kimono and saying something to him. Then, he had panicked, and in a desperate attempt to free himself from the vicelike grip, had latched his teeth right on to Aizen's hand. Hard enough so that it bled. Of course, this didn't sit well with Aizen at all. The last thing he recalled happening was being hit, hard, and then everything had gone black.

With another whimper, Hitsugaya slowly sat up, blinking hard. His head ached badly and his vision was blurry.

He looked around him, noticing that he had apparently been placed in a small room that was sparsely furnished. He was guessing that Aizen had decided to put him in a room that was at least mediocre to keep him alive. If what he had said to him was true, then it would be in the traitor's interests to treat him at least well enough so that he wouldn't die. The thought of "loving" this man was so revolting, that Hitsugaya wanted to kill himself for even just thinking about it as a possibility.

Aside from a small, barred window, there wasn't much to see. And the window was practically pointless anyway because it was at least a hundred feet above the floor.

How the hell did he end up in this mess?

_Hyourinmaru,_ he pleaded silently, _Hyourinmaru, help me..._

He rarely asked his zanpaku-to for aid when not in battle. But since his katana had been taken away from him, the icy dragon's presence felt frighteningly faint, and it scared him and made him sick with fear to be so far away from it for so long.

He recieved no response, only a weak chill to let him know the dragon was still there.

Slowly, Hitsugaya got to his feet to get a closer look at his surroundings. He crossed the room to the wall, placing a hand on the cold stone.

No wonder he felt so faint and weak. Not only was his zanpakuto gone, but he could feel that the wall was made of some unknown material, although one not different from what Seireitei's wall was constructed of.

In other words, Aizen had also taken care to seal his reiatsu tightly, lest he attempt to escape with kido.

With a eerie creak, the door suddenly opened, and startled, Hitsugaya moved back.

He wasn't suprised, although very displeased, to see Aizen there in the open doorway with the usual smile.

Slowly, Hitsugaya backed away. Trying to run through the now open door past the wretched man was a hopeless, and quite stupid plan. He knew there wasn't anywhere to go by moving backwards, but he didn't care. He just wanted to be as far away from this sickening man as possible.

"I've put in all this effort to make you comfortable, Hitsugaya-kun," Aizen spoke, "The least you could do is at least pretend to be grateful."

"I'm not grateful," the snow-haired captain retorted, "And I'm not a liar, either."

Aizen acted like he hadn't said anything at all. "It's a shame, really," he continued, "You could have so much more. Do you plan on allowing yourself to keep living like this, in this small, pitiful little room? No, Hitsugaya-kun, I know you have much more dignity than that...You have the air of an empress. And not just any empress at that, _my_ empress. All you need to do, Hitsugaya-kun...is to love me."

"You don't give a _shit_ about me," Hitsugaya spat, backing up even more as Aizen approached. "You don't care if I live or die, or what kind of a life I live. All you care about is my power."

He hit the wall, his hands pressed fearfully against the cold stone behind his back. There was no more distance that he could put between himself and the ex-captain of the fifth division.

"Why would I not care for you, Hitsugaya-kun?" Aizen smiled, "You're young, you're beautiful, and you're intelligent. What's there not to love?"

"The fact that I have no intention on letting you have me."

"Oh?"

Aizen was so close by now that Hitsugaya could feel his the warmth of his body. With an uncomfortable whimper, he tried to shrink back, turning his head away to avoid his maddeningly satisfied stare. But having the wall right behind him, needless to say, he didn't get very far.

With sickening, mock affection that made the terrified boy want to choke, Aizen slowly and deliberately reached out with one hand, turning the young captain's face forward before slowly sealing the gap between them, pressing his lips against his.

As much as he wanted to jerk away, Hitsugaya found that he could not. Aizen was not holding him in place or anything of the sort, but his presence alone was enough to render the boy immobile. All he could do was let out a muffled sob.

_No,_ he begged in his mind, _No, this can't be happening. Please, make it stop. _

He then found his mind drifting to one name.

_Please, don't let this man touch me anymore...Please help me...Kurosaki..._

Finally, after what seemed like an eternity, Aizen pulled away.

With a mixture of relief and fear, slowly, Hitsugaya weakly sank to the floor, his back still pressed against the cold, stone wall.

He couldn't look at Aizen anymore. It scared him too much how his stare could invoke every feeling in his body that was related to fear. With another choked sob, he averted his gaze downwards, tears streaming down his cheeks.

How he _hated_ this man, how he _hated_ this wretched place, how he _hated_ the way he had suddenly become so weak and helpless.

"I know why you don't want to love me, Hitsugaya-kun," Aizen spoke, looking down at the quietly crying boy. "There's someone else, isn't there? Someone else on your mind."

Hitsugaya did not answer.

"Don't worry," he chuckled, "I'll find out who he is. And let me assure you, whoever he is...He won't live to see you again."

With those words, he turned and left, closing the door noiselessly behind him.


	7. Drifting Thoughts

Author's Note: Thank you for all the input and everyone's opinions on whether or not I should stick in something M-rated...And because of all the feedback, I decided I would, yay! So I guess you can be "looking forward," if you will, to that coming up in the next few chapters as my treat to my readers! Thanks for all the reviews, too!

* * *

Getting through the pathway from the real world to Hueco Mundo had been the easy part. And getting into Las Noches was challenging enough for Ichigo, but the worst was yet to come.

Now that he had infiltrated Aizen's palace, he had no idea how much time he had left. He just knew that there wasn't much.

And it wasn't like he had a way of telling the time, either.

Now, he had to figure out just where the hell Hitsugaya was. Then he had to go find him, save him, and get the hell out of there. That was a lot to do, and who knew how much time he had left to get it done. If only he wasn't being pressured for time, this would be so much easier.

Moments earlier, he had ducked behind a wall to avoid detection, taking care to conceal his reiatsu like Urahara had taught. For someone like him who didn't even know any kido at all, this was quite a challenge.

Slowly, letting out a sigh, he reached into his robes, pulling out the small brooch Urahara had given to him before had left for Hueco Mundo.

Ichigo stared at it fondly for a few moments, turning it in his hands to admire the intricate craftsmanship that had been taken to create the item. Holding it felt nice. He could still feel an icy presence when holding it, and he knew it was because Hitsugaya's reiatsu was still left on it in trace amounts. He knew it was just reiatsu, but holding it made him feel so much closer to the captain of the tenth division, almost like he was holding his hand.

His mind drifted as he tried to visualize the pale, pretty face that he sorely missed. Why did this have to happen? Why would anyone want to take a child like Hitsugaya to a place like this, where he would be trapped? Ichigo knew that Hitsugaya, although not an outdoor person, was not one who would be comfortable enclosed in such a gloomy space like this one. If he couldn't get him out of here, he knew the rest of young captain's life would be ruined.

Standing around wasn't going to help anything. He had to get moving.

He concentrated hard. He hated to admit that he still sucked at sensing reiatsu. But he could feel Hitsugaya's distinctly. He knew that cold, icy, but warm and dignified aura.

He could feel Hyourinmaru inside himself, too.

It felt strange and a little different than it had back in Soul Society. It was weaker, fainter, more frantic, yet it cut deep into him with a strange sadness he had never felt before.

The white-haired captain's soul was sick. That was apparent.

What struck Ichigo was the pained, and almost desperate feel of the reiatsu. It felt almost as if it was calling to him, and him in particular. Trying to draw him closer, trying to send a signal to him, trying to bring him to its source. Begging him to come for him, to save him, to rescue him from this god-awful place and fill him back up with warmth.

Ichigo knew that now was the time that Hitsugaya needed him more than he ever had. He could feel it.

But hadn't Hitsugaya said it himself, that he had no feelings for Ichigo, and no desire to be with him? He remembered his cold words from that day clearly...

_I'm afraid to say that I don't feel the same way about you. You're little more to me than a person to chat occasionally with. I have no desire to go anywhere beyond that..._

He didn't know why he was here.

Sure, he admitted to himself that he was quite in love with the boy, but wasn't it true that Hitsugaya could care less about him?

But he wouldn't let that thought stop himself.

He didn't care what happened. No matter what, he'd get through this alive and bring Hitsugaya back to Soul Society.

Gently, Ichigo slipped the brooch back into the folds of his robes before carefully stepping out from the safety of behind the wall.

Right. It was time to get serious.

He instantly started on a run, moving as quickly and quietly as he could. He wasn't sure how much time he had left, but in any case, he had to be fast.

Last time he was in Hueco Mundo, it had taken a great deal of energy, since he had been forced to fight so many Arrancar, and even Espada.

But this time, he didn't have time for that. He couldn't afford to waste time and strength fighting.

Normally, Ichigo wasn't a man to run away from a fight, but this time, he knew he would have to.

This decision was reaffirmed in his mind as he stopped abruptly, seeing a figure in front of him. He blinked, pausing only to take a good look at the Arrancar now in front of him.

He knew that face. That broad, smug grin, and the electric blue hair.

It was Grimmjow alright, the sixth Espada. From what Ichigo remembered, he was not a man to mess with. Once they got involved in a scuffle, he wouldn't back down until their was a clear winner.

Of course, that was bound to take a long time. Time that Ichigo didn't have.

"What're you doing here, shinigami?" the grinning Espada spoke, watching Ichigo with a ravenous killer intent shining in his glass blue eyes.

"None of your business."

"I'll make it my business," Grimmjow shot back. "You're here for that kid, aren't you? That little tenth-division captain."

"Shut up," the strawberry growled, "This doesn't concern you."

"Oh, it does. It concerns me, alright," the Arrancar snickered, and Ichigo watched him warily as his hand went to the hilt of Pantera. "You and I still have some business to settle. And besides, if you want to find your little shinigami whore, you're going to have to get past me first…if you even can."

Clenching his fists at Grimmjow's crude reference to Hitsugaya, Ichigo was using all of his willpower to stop himself from lunging at the fucker and hacking him into pieces to make him take back what he had just said.

Instead, he slowly pulled Zangetsu from his back, holding the sword out in front of him.

"Bankai!"

He felt the familiar surge of energy pulsing through him, washing through every pore of his body down to his fingertips. Zangetsu slimmed in his hand, and without hesitation, he brought his hand to his face and materialized his hollow mask in a quick, fluid movement.

"Gonna use bankai on me, huh?" Grimmjow scoffed, unsheathing his own katana.

"Actually, no," Ichigo answered, "I don't plan on fighting you."

"Then what do you need that freakish mask and your bankai for?"

"To increase my speed."

"What the hell are you talking about-"

Before Grimmjow could even finish his sentence, Ichigo bolted, flash-stepping around him and speeding down the gray corridor. He felt stupid, running away from a fight, but he honestly did not have the time to waste there.

"Oi! You shinigami bastard, get your ass back here!"

Of course, Ichigo had no intention on turning back. He had to get as far away as possible from this guy. And by the looks of it, he had to pick up speed. The Espada had begun to give chase.


	8. Lost and Found

Author's Note: Woo-hoo, chapter eight now! For those of you who are still reviewing, thank you very much! Please note that I do pay attention to suggestions and ideas, even if I don't end up using them, but keep them coming because they really do help a lot! And don't worry, the M-Rated bit that you've all been looking forward to is coming up soon.

* * *

"Get your ass back here!"

"Like hell I will!"

"I'm gonna kill you, shinigami!"

"Just try!"

Shouting hollow threats back and forth, Ichigo continued to zip down the hallways of Las Noches, Grimmjow in hot pursuit. Unfortunately, not so hot, because not even the sixth Espada could keep up with Ichigo in his current state without Pantera released. And this little fact was working wonders in Ichigo's advantage, because the faster he got away, the better.

The blue-haired Arrancar soon fell behind, leaving Ichigo free to move towards the achingly familiar reiatsu.

He could feel it quite distinctly now, it wasn't far away.

There was also a certain air of distress to it that bothered the strawberry immensely. Was something happening to Hitsugaya? Was he hurt? In any case, he had to find out, and he had to find out fast before it was too late.

He turned a corner.

He went down another corrider.

Turned again.

Kept running.

He had to hurry, otherwise his hollow mask would wear off, decreasing his speed. And the longer he used bankai along with the hollow powers at the same time, his reiatsu would become much stronger and much easier to detect.

"Toshiro, where are you?" he muttered under his breath. "Stay right where you are...I'm almost there."

* * *

Meanwhile, back in the real world.

Since Ichigo's departure, Urahara had been keeping a close eye on the clock.

The morning had slowly moved into noon, and noon had slowly faded into the sunset.

Then it had turned dark.

It had been twenty hours since Ichigo had left.

He only had four remaining. And by the looks of it, he was still going strong, but nowhere near completing his mission.

"You'd better hurry, Kurosaki-san," the shopkeeper murmured, "Your time's running out..."

* * *

A quiet sigh echoed throught the bleak, empty, but securely locked room.

Hitsugaya didn't know how long it had been since Aizen had finally left him alone, for the time being, anyway. He leaned against the cold stone wall, breathing out again. His hands were tied tightly behind his back, serving to cut off his circulation. He couldn't even feel his hands anymore. In fact, he was so tired, famished, and weak that he couldn't feel hardly anything at all in the first place.

A while ago, he could have sworn that he had felt a burst of reiatsu. Reiatsu that had been very familiar to him, he had been so sure of it.

However, he had been quick to dismiss the incident as a figment of his imagination.

No one was coming for him, that he was sure of/

Especially not...

"...Kurosaki..."

The name slid softly through his lips. Strangely, it felt nice to say it, even if there was a possibility he wasn't going to see the owner of the name again. He wondered what he might be doing at this moment.

Not that it mattered.

He knew he had ruined any relationship that might have formed between them before they could even begin. That he had done deliberately, and even if he had not, it still wouldn't matter. As far as he could tell, he'd be trapped in this stupid stone shithole forever.

Hitsugaya closed his eyes, his breath coming out in short, quiet, but labored breaths.

Sullenly, he allowed himself to sink weakly to the floor.

Aizen hadn't bothered to provide food, water, or any other form of comfort at all. It wasn't that the man was trying to starve and dehydrate him, he probably just had such little concern for his well-being that he had forgotten, that bastard.

Speaking of which, what was the point of going on anymore?

He had no more life, as far as he was concerned. He might as well just learn to love the fucker, and maybe he'd leave him alone.

A cold breeze brushed his legs, which were now bare thanks to the hakama-ripping incident that had occured who-knows-how-many hours ago. He shivered, which was unlike him.

Wait - a breeze? And a cold one at that.

It didn't make sense. Here in Hueco Mundo, there was no wind, let alone any inside Las Noches. And what would explain the sudden change in temperature? Then, it hit him. Hyourinmaru. The dragon of ice was returning to his conciousness.

The young captain was so grateful for the slight return that he almost smiled.

"Hyourinmaru...are you there...?" he whispered aloud hoarsely.

Then, he felt it within himself. A rumbling, frigid, presence. Then, the familiar, deep, booming voice of the dragon in his mind, although significantly fainter.

_There's nothing to be afraid of anymore. **He** is on his way._

"He?" Hitsugaya repeated, "Who do you mean? Is someone coming...?"

Oh god, he couldn't mean Aizen, could he?

That was when he heard footsteps outside. Since the room was blocking reiatsu from both entering and escaping, Hitsugaya really had no way of telling who it was.

It couldn't be anyone but Aizen, he thought.

Fearfully, Hitsugaya forced himself to sit up, wincing in pain as he, to no avail, tried to wriggle his hands free from their restraints. He could hear the sound of a hand on the knob, turning it once. Then there was nothing.

Hitsugaya closed his eyes, curled himself up into the smallest ball he could, and silently prayed for deliverance from what he knew was to come.

Then, he heard the voice.

"Damn, the door's locked."

Dulled emerald eyes shot open in shock.

He knew that voice.

"K-Kurosaki...?" he breathed, his eyes wide.

No, it couldn't be. He was dreaming. Why would he even dare to think about this being possible at all? It couldn't be. It simply couldn't. This was just too much to ever hope for. Ichigo wouldn't come for him. He knew that very well.

"Toshiro? Toshiro, are you in there?" came the low, frantic whisper again. "Toshiro, answer me, please..."

It really was him.

Hitsugaya wanted to cry with happiness.

"K-Kurosaki, I'm..."

"Any way of opening this from the inside?"

"...N-No, it's locked inside out, I think..."

"Ah. Uh, hang on a second..."

There was the distinctive _clink_ of metal, the sound of a katana being drawn. Then came that wonderful, warm voice again.

"Hey, Toshiro, can you step back for a second?"

Hitsugaya was a little confused, but he did as he was told and quietly moved against the wall. He was glad he did.

_"Getsuga Tenshou!"_

There was an explosion of spiritual energy and rubble. Coughing, Hitsugaya strained to see through the debris. Ichigo had just busted straight through the wall. Even with the reiatsu seal that had been placed upon the room, his getsuga had been more than enough to complete the job, and now there was a big, nice, smoldering hole where the door had once been.

The young captain looked up.

It was Ichigo alright.

But there was a strange, unfamiliar reiatsu surrounding the shinigami subsitute, not to mention the grotesque hollow mask covering his face from view. He blinked. Was this really Ichigo? It didn't feel like him. The reiatsu was the same, but much coarser and rougher. It didn't feel right at all.

Ichigo noticed Hitsugaya's confused expression. "It's me," he spoke, trying to reassure the uncertain boy, moving a hand to his face to dissolve the mask. "Relax, it's me, Kurosaki Ichigo." There was a pause. "...You _do_ remember me, right?"

Hitsugaya slowly nodded. He opened his mouth to speak, but no words came out.

"Are you okay?" Ichigo asked as he knelt by the boy, working quickly to untie his bound wrists.

"I'm fine."

"I'm glad," the strawberry smiled, gently running a hand through the snow-white locks. "Come on, let's get you out of this place."

"Kurosaki..."

"Yeah?"

"Why?"

Ichigo blinked. "Why what?"

Hitsugaya looked away before mumbling, "Why did you come for me...?"

There was a brief pause before Ichigo answered firmly, "Because I wanted to."

"Even after what I said to you?"

"...Yeah."

"About that, Kurosaki," Hitsugaya began, "Honestly, I-"

He stopped mid-sentence, a small gasp slipping past his lips. He looked up over Ichigo's shoulder. Wide, terrified teal eyes moved upwards to meet cold brown. Behind them, in the crumbling mess of what used to be the entrance to the room, stood Aizen.

And he looked _pissed_.


	9. Mistake

Author's Note: We're only on Chapter 9, so sorry, but don't expect Hitsugaya to be getting out of this pickle anytime soon. And yes, your M-Rated stuff is also on its way, you'll see it within the next few chapters. So look forward to that, I guess. And keep the reviews coming, too!

* * *

Feeling the terrifyingly familiar reiatsu, Ichigo turned.

"Shit," he cursed under his breath, seeing the very man he had been hoping to avoid standing in the remnants of the doorway

Why now of all times? He was almost out of time, that he could tell. And Aizen's sudden appearance would only serve to take up even more of the last, valuable hour he had. If they didn't get moving now, it would be too late, and everything would have been for nothing.

"I was wondering what all the commotion was," Aizen spoke, his voice low, cold, and dangerous. "I never would have thought _this_ was what was going on..." He glanced at Ichigo, a chuckle rising from his throat. "Kurosaki Ichigo, looks like you're the one to cause trouble again. And after I was sure to let Hitsugaya-kun know that you weren't going to come for him, too. What an interesting turn of events..."

"Not everyone is like you," Ichigo ground out through clenched teeth, "Some of us actually have feelings. Some of us actually _care_ about other people."

"Oh, I do care about Hitsugaya-kun," Aizen answered smoothly, "After all, if I didn't care, how would the boy learn to love me?"

"You can't force Toshiro to love you!" Ichigo retorted, "Are you stupid or something!? And besides, why would he even _want_ to!? No one's going to want to love a sick, twisted, son of a bitch like you! Leave him _alone._"

Aizen's smile broadened.

"I see now," he spoke calmly, ignoring Ichigo completely, now turning to Hitsugaya.

"Do you still remember the little chat we had earlier today, Hitsugaya-kun?" he asked, "About exactly why you refuse to love me."

The white-haired boy did not answer.

"It's because of _this_ boy, isn't it?"

Hitsugaya remained silent.

"Ah, then I'll take that as a yes," Aizen chuckled, "I also daresay you remember what I told you would happen if I ever found out who it was..."

"What's going on?" Ichigo demanded, "What the hell are you talking about?"

Slowly, Aizen unsheathed his katana, taking a step closer to the pair.

Hitsugaya panicked.

"No!"

He threw himself between the confused Ichigo and the smiling Aizen before he could fully unsheath Kyoka Suigetsu. He knew that Aizen was a man of his word who would stick to every threat he made, no matter what. But he couldn't let that happen, not after Ichigo had come all the way to Hueco Mundo just to save _his_ sorry ass. He was desperate, he would do anything to ensure that Aizen would agree not to hurt the strawberry.

"Don't," he pleaded frantically, his words coming out in a rushed, panicked stream. "I-I'll do anything, I swear, just please let him leave unharmed, I'll do _anything_ you ask, _anything_, just don't hurt him..."

Ichigo stared at Hitsugaya in disbelief.

"Don't be stupid, Toshiro!" he yelled, "Do you really think I'm gonna sit back and watch you let this man take advantage of you!?"

"Kurosaki, I-"

"_Anything?_" Aizen interjected.

Hitsugaya turned back to the traitor before hesitantly nodding.

"Anything," he answered before quickly adding, "If you promise to let Kurosaki go unharmed."

Aizen seemed to consider the offer for a moment before his face once again broke into a broad, smug smile.

"Of course, Hitsugaya-kun," he finally said smoothly in a voice saturated with mock affection, "Anything for you."

The air was so thick with tension that it could almost be felt.

"Toshiro," Ichigo cut in, grabbing the boy by the shoulder, "Are you out of your mind!?"

"It's alright, Kurosaki," Hitsugaya answered softly, gently pulling away from the enraged subsitute shinigami. "You came all the way here for my sake, this is the least I can do for you."

"No! You can't do this!"

"Yes, I can."

"Toshiro, _please._"

"If you don't mind, Kurosaki Ichigo, Hitsugaya-kun and I are having a chat," Aizen interupted again, earning a hateful glare from Ichigo.

The traitor then turned to Hitsugaya.

"Become my queen, Hitsugaya-kun," he spoke in the usual even tone, "And I promise to let the little strawberry go free, unharmed."

"You _promise_?"

"Yes."

There was a long pause before Hitsugaya finally answered in a soft voice that was barely above a whisper.

"Then I consent."

Ichigo's mouth fell open.

He turned to Aizen, sheer rage blazing in his copper eyes. "Y-You worthless, shitty, son of a bitch!" he roared. He was so angry, that even his reiatsu had begun to flare violently, the hollow dangerously close to emerging. "What do you want with Toshiro, anyway!?"

"That's none of your concern," Aizen answered calmly, "Now, I plan on honoring my promise to Hitsugaya-kun."

The man then stooped downwards, grabbing Hitsugaya by the wrist and pulled him to his feet, completely ignoring the yelp of pain he recieved, seeing as he wasn't bothering to be very gentle at all with the delicate child prodigy.

"Come on, Hitsugaya-kun," he ordered, his voice harder, the smile gone. "Seeing the mess you made out of this room, I'll have to find you another one." He then glanced over his shoulder at Ichigo. "You're free to go, Ichigo-kun," he spoke, "I won't stop you from leaving."

"Like hell I'm just gonna get up and go!" Ichigo shouted, rising to his feet, starting after Aizen.

He moved to follow Aizen, who was dragging a reluctant Hitsugaya behind him. He found, however, that he couldn't move a muscle.

"I put a little kido spell on you," the ex captain of the fifth division explained casually, "It'll wear off in a few moments. By then, it'll be too late to try and follow us."

"What are you going to do to Toshiro!?" Ichigo demanded, his voice rising in anger. "If you hurt him, Aizen, I swear I'll..."

"You'll what?" Aizen cut him off with a laugh. "I just want to have a little fun with my new little queen, is there something wrong with that?"

"Y-You..."

They were getting away.

And Ichigo could do nothing to stop them.

As they got further and further away, he watched as Hitsugaya turned his head to look at him again.

"Kurosaki...I'm sorry."

And then they were gone.

Words could not describe the amount of frustration, hate, and anger that Ichigo felt as finally, the effects of the kido spell began to wear off.

He couldn't feel Hitsugaya's reiatsu anymore.

He knew that his time was almost up, but he had to try again anyway. He started off on the path that Hitsugaya and Aizen had disappeared on, moving as fast as his legs would carry him. It was really a hopeless situation, but he kept going anyway. He knew, deep down, that it was too late. He had screwed up. And there was no way to fix it or to reverse it.

That was when he felt it. A strong series of reiatsu surrounding him.

He stopped abruptly, blinking as several shinigami appeared in a ring around him.

"Who are you guys?" he demanded, "Get out of my way."

That was when he noticed one of the shinigami was the captain of the sixth division, Kuchiki Byakuya.

"What are you doing here?" the strawberry demanded.

"Orders from the sotaichou," droned the stoic captain, "Twenty-four hours have passed since you entered Hueco Mundo. And by the looks of it...you failed to finish what you came for. Nonetheless Soul Society has demanded for your immediate return."

"Like hell I'm going back now!" Ichigo shouted, "I can't...We can't...We can't just leave Toshiro here!"

"It's a shame, really," was the monotone reply, "But orders are orders. Kurosaki Ichigo...you're going back, no matter what you say."


	10. Love and Lust

Author's Note: I don't know what happened - but I suddenly got struck with the urge to update _Hanging on the Edge. _I promised in the Author's Note for another of my one-shots that I was going to update this soon, so here you are, as I promised! I actually got around to it a little later than I had originally intended, but here it is now. This is the first "dead" fic I've attempted to revive, so hopefully, if you all keep reviewing, I'll be encouraged to continue updating this one until it's finally finished.I know it's been a long time since the last update, so I'm sorry if you find yourself having to reread some things because you forgot what was going on! Oh yes. I also promised rated M material for this chapter a while back - so, enjoy yourself with the lemon/rape ahead. You have been warned.

* * *

"So tell me, Hitsugaya-kun," Aizen began with a pleasant smile, "How exactly did you ask Ichigo-kun to come here?"

"I didn't."

"Oh? So you expect me to believe that he came on his own accord?"

Since having last seen Ichigo, Hitsugaya had been dragged off by the wrist, with Aizen claiming that he had been naughty and no longer deserved to stay in his quarters anymore. Instead, he would be taken to Aizen's throne room, where the traitor would be able to keep an eye on him every hour of the day.

Aizen entered the room, Hitsugaya in tow.

Several Arrancar were sitting inside, as well as Ichimaru and Tosen. Aizen gave his right-hand-men each a gracious smile.

"If everyone could please leave the room," he announced calmly, "I wish to have some time alone with Hitsugaya-kun."

With several grumpy grunts, the Arrancar left the room first, followed shortly afterwards by a stony-faced Tosen and a grinning Ichimaru. Each seemed to survey Hitsugaya for a moment, who merely glared back, before finally, the room was empty.

He was alone in this impossibly large room with this impossibly sickening man.

"You want to tell me the truth yet, Hitsugaya-kun?"

"I have nothing to say to you," Hitsugaya snarled.

"I was right, wasn't I?" Aizen chuckled, "You _are _fond of that Kurosaki Ichigo, aren't you?"

Hitsugaya did not answer.

"But don't forget, Hitsugaya-kun," Aizen continued, pacing the room, walking slow, deliberate circles around the snow-haired boy, who was rooted to the spot in dread or fear, or even a combination of both. "You belong to me now. Not to some undeserving, clumsy substitute shinigami."

Hitsugaya remained silent.

"You know," the traitorous ruler of Hueco Mundo went on, "I've _always _been fascinated by you, Hitsugaya-kun. Back when I was a captain of the Gotei 13, when I heard of a mysterious child prodigy rumored to be the heavenly guardian's incarnation, I just had to see you. And I was not disappointed, you were indeed quite a pretty one. I became obsessed with you, Hitsugaya-kun. You were like a drug to me. I wanted you for myself, and that thought consumed me and even after I left Soul Society, stayed with me. I knew that one day, you would finally be mine, and only mine. And I have finally made that wish of mine come true, after so many years of watching and waiting."

The young captain shuddered in revulsion, but otherwise, did not reply.

"And since you will always be mine, Hitsugaya-kun, don't think that you will ever be able to return to Soul Society. Hueco Mundo is your home now, and as I requested of you, you will rule by my side. Don't get me wrong, Hitsugaya-kun, I do not _love_ you, I only _want_ you. There is a difference between lust and love that you must be aware of, as I have no qualms against harming you or killing you, should I one day tire of you. However, there is still one problem...I need your powers."

He glanced at Hitsugaya, whose eyes seemed to be glued to the floor.

"Say you love me," Aizen commanded, his voice hardening, "Just three words, Hitsugaya-kun. Three words, and you won't have anything more to fear."

Hitsugaya looked at him, unafraid. He met Aizen's stony gaze with his own fierce eyes, his jaw clenched defiantly.

"I do not love you."

An unpleasant, unamused smile appeared on the lips of the ex-captain of the fifth division.

"Your heart may not belong to me, but your body and your soul do," he answered smoothly, "You have nothing left, Hitsugaya-kun. Tell me you love me, and I assure you that from this point forward, you will have everything you want and need."

Hitsugaya was quiet.

"Not in the mood to talk, are we?"

The smile gone from his face, Aizen reached out, grasping the boy's chin, jerking it roughly upwards, forcing him to look him in the eyes. "Say it," he commanded again, his voice hard and impatient. "Say it now."

Hitsugaya remained silent.

His lips pursed in impatience, Aizen grabbed Hitsugaya by the wrists, pulling him to the wall and pushing him against the stone. Before he could utter a single protest or make any move to get away, the child prodigy found his wrists in chains, restrained to the wall.

"You won't be quiet for much longer, Hitsugaya-kun," Aizen announced evenly, pulling Kyoka Suigetsu from its sheath. "I'll give you one more chance. Say you love me."

With an angry snarl, Hitsugaya did little to answer other than spitting at Aizen's feet.

The man's eyes flashed with cold fury.

"I understand. So, you want to do it the hard way then."

He reached to Hitsugaya's waist, giving the fabric a hard pull. The material ripped effortlessly, exposing the pale thighs to the chill of the room. Hitsugaya shuddered, back pressed against the wall, his breath coming out softly and fearfully.

With a satisfied smile, Aizen held the katana to the porcelain complexion, pressing the edge of the blade downwards with his index finger. The metal bit into the skin, blood instantly welling to the surface and trickling down the length of the boy's trembling legs.

Hitsugaya let out a short gasp of pain, but nothing more, his teeth clenched tightly.

The brown-haired man increased the pressure on the blade, now pressing down with two fingers. The prodigy whimpered softly, back pressed tightly against the wall and wrists straining at the chains that held him. With cruel, deliberately slow speed, Aizen dragged the blade oh-so-slowly towards the left, leaving a deep red cut that got longer by the moment.

"Say it."

Hitsugaya shook his head fiercely, a small cry falling from his lips. He squeezed his eyes shut, not daring to look at the sadistic, pleased expression on his captor's face. It hurt terribly, but he was not going to give in. He would not say those words that would seal his fate.

With a snort of disgust, Aizen slapped Hitsugaya roughly across the face, the sound of the impact ringing through the empty, cold gray room.

Panting, Hitsugaya slowly and reluctantly opened his eyes, glancing at Aizen.

The man's face was contorted with some strange, sickening kind of anger that frightened the prodigy.

"Fine, then, I suppose this method of torture isn't enough for someone as stubborn as you," Aizen ground out, his voice eerily quiet and cold. It was enough to scare Hitsugaya out of his wits, and he wondered what was in store for him next.

With another swift movement, Aizen gave the fabric of the kimono another violent pull, baring the boy's hips and what little was still being covered by cloth on his legs for all to see.

"Wh-What are you doing!?" Hitsugaya spluttered, horrified, his eyes wide with terror as the kimono slipped softly from his shoulders and downwards towards his elbows. He felt Aizen gripping his waist, and with a fearful whimper, he tried to turn away.

"Relax, Hitsugaya-kun," Aizen whispered into his ear, "Why don't we have some fun with this?"

"No!" he yelped, wriggling furiously, a disgusted and fearful shudder running down his spine as he felt the man's hot breath skirting accross his neck and shoulders, setting the flesh aflame with pure horror. "D-Don't!"

"All you have to do is say those three words."

"Never."

"Then don't you tell me what to do and what not to do."

A shuddering gasp fell from the delicate lips as the terrified boy felt the larger pair of hands running from his shoulders down the rest of his body. He squirmed uncomfortably, whimpering pitifully. "No..."

He squeezed his eyes shut again, as the hands dipped lower, lower than he would ever want them to be.

"You had this coming, Hitsugaya-kun," Aizen murmured, stroking the snowy locks in mock affection.

Vaguely, through his own frightened, ragged breathing, Hitsugaya could hear a second pair of garments falling quietly to the floor, then hot, sticky skin uncomfortably against his own cold complexion, a feeling he had never known, and never wanted from this man. He bit down on his tongue to stop himself from cryong out at the unwanted touch, the metallic taste of blood filling his mouth.

Then, pain erupted through the small body.

The emerald eyes shot open in agony, and Hitsugaya choked back a scream as the older man tore mercilessly into him.

"S-Stop it..." he managed to gasp out, his face flushed red with humiliation and his body trembling with fear, his throat raw and his breathing labored. His hair clung to his face with perspiration, and his eyes, once again, were squeezed tightly shut, trying in vain to block out the excruciating pain. He struggled pitifully, trying in vain to get away from him.

"What's the matter?" Aizen murmured, "Still won't make any noise, hmm?"

He thrust inwards again, more forcefully, earning a sharp cry from the smaller boy. Slowly, but surely the cries welled into screams as the traitor, pleased with the results of his actions, slammed into the smaller body again and again.

"No more...please, no more..." Hitsugaya gasped out between sobs. Dignity be damned. That had been lost long ago. He never imagined that he would ever be in a position that he would have to beg the man he hated more than anyone, but it was happening now, and it was terribly, painfully, real.

"And why not? Just imagine I'm Ichigo-kun," came the amused reply accompanied by a dark chuckle.

The young prodigy shuddered in revulsion. How could he even be expected to _compare_ the two? Ichigo would never do anything to hurt him. Aizen did what Ichigo would not for the sake of his own amusement and satisfaction.

Finally, after what seemed like hours of unbearable pain, Hitsugaya felt his body go numb as he reached his limit, dully registering the sickening sensation of fluid trickling down his bare legs as Aizen pulled out of him at last. Weakly, the boy sunk to the floor, too exhausted to move. Standing over him, Aizen calmly redid his own robes as if nothing had happened before kneeling downwards, a hand resting on Hitsugaya's flushed face.

"Say it."

Hitsugaya opened his lips, but no sound came from them, his throat hoarse from screaming.

"Well? I'm waiting."

"I...will never...love you," he breathed out, his voice barely above a whisper.

Aizen was quiet. "I suspected as much," he spoke as he stood, "But it doesn't matter. If your heart still belongs to Ichigo-kun...then I'll just have to work that little loophole into my plan, won't I? I'm a smart man, Hitsugaya-kun...and I _will_ have your power."

* * *

Author's Note: Ugh, my second lemon. It was freaking hard to write. Sorry I didn't go into extreme detail, I'm not really comfortable with that. But anyway, I'll start working on the next chapter, so tell me what you thought about this one.


	11. Lost Cause

Author's Note: Yay, finally got my train of thought back into motion on this fic! I think I know what to do for the ending, but for nows we'll just have to come up with something else to fill up the space between then, hopefully it won't get too boring, and I'm sorry if it does! I wasn't happy with the last chapter, but anyway, hopefully you'll enjoy this next installment, and as usual, read and review!

* * *

"I'm telling you, you're making a mistake!" Ichigo shouted angrily, "Send me back to Hueco Mundo!"

Since having lost Hitsugaya's trail in Hueco Mundo, he had been escorted back to Soul Society by Byakuya and several other members of the sixth division. He had protested the whole time, and sick of hearing him complain, Byakuya had grudgingly agreed to take the outraged strawberry to the first division office, where a captain's meeting had been convened.

The sotaichou was now observing the strawberry closely, listening as he shouted. The other captains watched in silence.

"Please," Ichigo implored, this time, almost begging, "Give me another chance. Let me bring Toshiro back."

"It is evident by now that Hitsugaya-taichou has no intention of betraying Soul Society," Yamamoto slowly spoke, "However, Kurosaki Ichigo, returning to Hueco Mundo would be too dangerous. If Aizen made the effort to bring Hitsugaya-taichou to Hueco Mundo, then we have to assume that he is planning to make a move soon."

"And what if his plans involve Toshiro?" Ichigo demanded angrily, "He could be hurt, or killed! We can't just wait here for that to happen!"

"It is truly regrettable," the sotaichou answered slowly, "But you must understand, Kurosaki Ichigo, that I cannot endanger you, or any other member of the Gotei 13 over a lost cause."

There was a painful silence follow these words.

Stunned, Ichigo opened and closed his mouth stupidly. _Lost cause?_

"Then...you plan on giving up on him, don't you?"

"If the chance arises, our priority will be Hitsugaya-taichou's retrieval. However, as of now, to do so would be out of the question."

"When?" the strawberry demanded, impatience ebbing in his voice "When will the chance arise? We can't keep sitting here and wait to get lucky. We don't have that kind of liberty, especially because Toshiro is...he's in trouble. _He_ can't afford for us to wait-"

"Kurosaki Ichigo," Yamamoto cut him off sharply, "It will happen in due time. You must remain calm."

"How do you expect me to be calm at a time like this!?"

"That's your problem, Kurosaki Ichigo, you always must take the roughest path. We are as concerned for Hitsugaya-taichou's well-being as you are. As such, I will attempt to negotiate with Aizen for his release, but I cannot make you any promises, nor will I allow you to get yourself killed over this."

"There is no negotiating with Aizen!" Ichigo ground out through gritted teeth, "I thought you would have figured that out by now."

"I will arrange for a video conference with Aizen," Yamamoto answered evenly as if Ichigo hadn't said anything at all, "You may attend if you wish. Tomorrow at noon, in this very office. Now then, Kurosaki Ichigo, you are excused.

* * *

"A video conference? That foolish old man wants a video conference with me?" Aizen chuckled.

Hitsugaya watched him converse with Ichimaru and Tosen quietly. Being in Aizen's throne room, humiliatingly kneeling on the floor, chained to the wall by the wrists like a misbehaving dog, sometimes he found that the best thing to do was pretend to be invisible.

Every now and then, an Arrancar would jeer at him, or Ichimaru would mock him with that annoying, sing-song voice of his. Aizen himself would look at him and smile in his maddeningly self-satisfied manner, stopping every now and then to ruffle his hair or stroke his face, to which he would react with disgust and try to move himself as far away as possible. He wasn't sure what Tosen thought of this whole thing, but at least he didn't say anything about it as if Hitsugaya wasn't even there, and that proved to be a blessing.

Ichimaru looked at Aizen, his head cocked in amusement. "Is that so? They wanna talk 'ta ya or somethin'?"

He was so fake that Hitsugaya longed to grab him by the throat and throttle him to death.

But that was the law of life in Hueco Mundo: be fake, or break. Aizen's benevolent smile was so false. The Arrancar hid behind their tough exteriors, not wanting anyone to think they were scared of Aizen and what might happen if they disobeyed him. Hell, even Tosen's bullshit about justice was probably all a front. And Hitsugaya was doing his best to pretend that he was not absolutely terrified by Aizen and being in this place.

"I suppose something to that extent," Aizen smiled. "So what do you say, Gin? Kaname? Shall we give the old man his audience?"

Ichimaru merely grinned his crazy feline smile.

"We will do what is necessary for the sake of justice," Tosen answered calmly.

Hitsugaya almost laughed at the hypocrisy.

"Very well then, gentlemen," Aizen smiled, "We will meet with him via video conference at the designated time; tomorrow at noon." He paused, his cold brown eyes resting on Hitsugaya for a moment, his lips curling upwards in some kind of sick amusement. "And why don't you join us as well, Hitsugaya-kun?"

* * *

The first division office was deathly quiet as Ichigo slowly entered, pushing the door quietly closed behind him.

Besides himself, the only people present appeared to be Yamamoto and his fukutaichou, and he was quick to assume that having all the other captains present would merely result in chaos. He cleared his throat uncomfortably to make his presence known.

"Ah, Kurosaki Ichigo, so you came," Yamamoto nodded in his direction, and slowly, Ichigo approached the large screen that was set up at the room's front. Aside from the soft, crackling static coming from the monitor, there was no noise in the room.

He waited, his fists clenching and unclenching nervously. He licked his painfully dry lips, his eyes glued warily to the screen.

He blinked as the static began to fade, the images on the screen blurry at first, but as the resolution cleared, he could very clearly see Aizen smiling back at them, Tosen and Ichimaru at his sides. The strawberry clenched his teeth in hatred upon seeing Aizen and his maddening smile. The man obviously thought he was some kind of fucking saint or something.

"Where is he?" Ichigo promptly demanded, "Where's Toshiro!? What have you done to him!?"

Yamamoto gave him a disapproving look, and Aizen's smile merely became more gracious, if that was even possible.

"Ah, so you want to see Hitsugaya-kun?" Aizen asked calmly. "Very well then, since you insist on it so much, I suppose it would be the polite thing to do." He motioned to someone or something off-screen, and a few moments later, an Arrancar appeared, dragging someone along. This _someone's _formerly tidy black robes were torn to shreds, what remained of them hanging pitifully from the trembling body. His hands were bound behind his back, and a black veil obscured his face from view.

With an exaggerated flourish, Aizen took hold of the black veil, pulling it away with a flourish to reveal Hitsugaya's tired, scared face.

"Toshiro..." Ichigo breathed.

The beautiful snow-white locks were dissheveled and the once bright emerald eyes were now dull and exhausted. The boy's breathing was coming out in quiet, shallow gasps, and he seemed so frail and helpless that it scared Ichigo. He seemed so weak that if it were not for the Arrancar taking firm grip of his hair, he would have collapsed right on the spot.

"Now then," Aizen spoke, taking great amusement in the stunned, horrified look on Ichigo's face, "Now that Hitsugaya-kun is present, shall we begin this silly video conference?"


	12. Promise

Author's Note: I guess I've been really bored lately if I've been having the urges to update more and more...this is the second update I've done for one day! Maybe we'll be able to get to the end without me getting bored and abandoning this fic again after all! Well, anyway, here's chapter twelve for you, my good readers. Hopefully it'll be to your liking. Read and review, you know the drill.

* * *

Ichigo couldn't move his eyes away from the screen.

Hitsugaya's image stared back at him, eyes dull but wide, and pleading. The subsitute shinigami clenched his fists tightly, his nails digging painfully into his palms. He had promised to get him out of Hueco Mundo, and he had failed. He couldn't imagine what Hitsugaya was going through or thinking about now.

Guiltily, he adverted his gaze.

"Well then, sotaichou," Aizen began with mock respect, "What can I do for you today?"

"I'm sure you've figured by now that the purpose of me calling this video conference is to negotiate the release of Hitsugaya Toshiro," Yamamoto answered calmly. Hitsugaya looked a little surprised at these words, and even Aizen seemed as if he hadn't been expecting it. It seemed like the sotaichou was the only person who was not afraid of Aizen.

"Oh? I was under the impression that you were going to confer for peace with me."

"There is no such thing as peace anymore," Yamamoto replied, quite truthfully, "State your terms for the release of the tenth-division captain."

Aizen only smiled.

His smile was so calm, so self-assured. It was as if he had everything in his control, and he knew it. It infuriated Ichigo like nothing else.

"Let him go!" the strawberry snarled hatefully, "Aizen, you bastard..."

"Gentlemen," the traitor spoke smoothly in an even, velvety tone like poisoned chocolate, "Power is a very rare commodity in people nowadays, as is beauty...let alone both." One of his hands was resting on Hitsugaya's shoulder now, and Ichigo wanted with all his heart to lunge forward and strangle the fucker - he had to remind himself that it was only an image of them on the screen.

"Get to the point, Aizen," he muttered angrily.

"I'm not going to pretend to keep any secrets from you fine gentlemen," Aizen announced, "Because I'm sure you know of Hitsugaya-kun's true identity."

"True identity?" Yamamoto repeated, "And you are referring to the legend of the...heavenly guardian?"

"Precisely. I'm sure it's obvious by now that I plan to release - and use - the power of the guardian. How do you suppose I do that if I am to return him to you? Now, it's only a matter of time...isn't it, Hitsugaya-kun?"

Hitsugaya looked at Aizen with wide eyes, before hastily turning back to the screen's front.

"S-Sotaichou...Kurosaki...I would never..."

He was abruptly cut off as with an annoyed grunt, the Arrancar clamped a hand over his mouth, silencing him. Hitsugaya made a muffled protest and wriggled feebly as Aizen watched coldly. Ichigo could feel the anger in his veins like a plague now.

"Don't touch him!" he burst out furiously, "Let go of him!"

Aizen gave Ichigo the coldest look he had ever seen, and he felt himself shiver involuntarily.

"I believe this discussion is now over," Aizen spoke. "If you'll excuse us, sotaichou...Ichigo-kun."

Ichigo was about to turn away when he saw Hitsugaya squirm out of the Arrancar's grasp, stumbling forward, and, Ichigo noted with a sharp pang of guilt, almost losing balance as he staggered forward.

"Kurosaki, I'm so sorry," he blurted, "I...I love-"

Before he could finish the sentence, Aizen, with a sour look on his face, gave the boy a stinging slap across the face. It was almost enough to knock Hitsugaya completely off what little balance he had left, and Ichigo was clenching his fists so hard that he was positive his fingernails were cutting into his palms and making him bleed now.

"I don't remember giving you permission to speak, Hitsugaya-kun," the traitor spoke in a soft, cold voice.

"Aizen, you...you son of a bitch!" Ichigo shouted. He couldn't contain himself anymore. "I swear, Aizen...next time we meet, I _will_ kill you!"

"Just try, Ichigo-kun," he chuckled, and Ichigo could see the Arrancar dragging Hitsugaya away now, whose gaze seemed to be locked with the strawberry's, despite the fact that he was being pulled away from the screen.

"Toshiro! I...I'll save you! I'll get you away from Aizen as soon as I can!" Ichigo cried frantically, "I promise!"

The last thing he saw was Hitsugaya's painfully sad smile before the image on the screen faded to blurred static.

* * *

If there was one advantage of being chained up in Aizen's throne room, Hitsugaya figured that it was the fact that he heard everything the traitor said to his accomplices and the Arrancar. Including his plans.

Aizen seemed confident that no one would try to save him again, so he had no problem laying out plans and strategies while he was there.

At the moment, Hitsugaya knew two things.

Number one. Aizen was planning to mount a full-scale attack on Soul Society. It would involve all his Arrancar, all his Espada, both of his right-hand men, and himself. It was clear that it was the real deal: take no prisoners, leave no survivors. This was it.

Number two. He planned to take this plan in action the following morning.

"Hitsugaya-kun."

Slightly startled at hearing his name, Hitsugaya reluctantly lifted his head to show Aizen he was listening. "What is it?" he muttered.

"You will be joining us tomorrow on the front lines as well," Aizen announced, as if it was some kind of privilege. Privilege be damned, the prodigy would rather kill himself than help the bastard. And how would he be expected to fight? He had been deprived of proper sustainance for the whole time he was in Hueco Mundo; by now he was almost a living skeleton, slowly wasting away.

He laughed dryly.

"That's lovely, Aizen," he answered, "One problem, though...how do you expect me to fight like _this_?"

"Oh, you won't be fighting," Aizen answered evenly, still smiling. "You'll be doing something a little different. I know what you were going to say to Kurosaki-kun yesterday afternoon during the video conference."

Hitsugaya was silent.

"So, if indeed, your heart belongs to Kurosaki Ichigo, then I cannot change that, unfortunately. What I _can_ do, however, is have you find Kurosaki Ichigo, and have him release your guardian power."

"And what will that do for you?" Hitsugaya demanded, suddenly angered that Aizen would dare include Ichigo in his plans.

"He will have your power temporarily, yes," the traitor nodded, "But if I kill him, it will be passed on to _me_. And that will not be a difficult task to accomplish, seeing as how weak and powerless Ichigo-kun is compared to myself." He laughed darkly, and Ichimaru next to him chuckled as if this was some kind of hilarious joke. Tosen, as usual, made no noise.

Hitsugaya stared at Aizen in disbelief.

"You wouldn't," he whispered, "You wouldn't dare."

"Oh, I would," the former captain of the fifth division beamed. He rose from his throne, and Hitsugaya looked away, feeling sick to his stomach.

"Gentlemen, if you please. It's getting late, and tomorrow is a big day for us."

The three men got up and walked towards the exit, their footsteps echoing throughout the eerie room.

"I trust that you will make me proud tomorrow, Hitsugaya-kun," Aizen smiled, running his hands through Hitsugaya's silvery locks in mock affection as he passed by. Hitsugaya merely gave him a look of sheer hatred, jerking his head away from the man's reach as the three traitors finally left the room, closing the door behind them.

* * *

Author's Note: Ah, I wasn't really fond of this chapter. As I was re-reading it, I realized, _Man, this sounds so cheesy_. I hope that you can all find it within yourselves to forgive me for that. Anyway, thanks for reading, and I'll update again as soon as I can!


	13. If Only

Author's Note: Thanks for all the reviews! I'll try to keep updating quickly, so hopefully this story will be complete in a time frame of around...let's say two weeks. Maybe even less. In any case, it'll definetely be done by the end of the month - I think. Afterwards, I plan on releasing some more one-shots, and maybe start on another multi-chapter if I feel the motivation.

* * *

Ichigo hadn't felt so useless in a long time.

He wasn't sure what exactly it was, but since having seen Hitsugaya during the video conference, he had instantly found himself in an uneasy state of - dare he say it - depression. Maybe it was seeing Hitsugaya in that state. He looked to be in even worse shape than when he had last seen him in person back in Hueco Mundo. Undoubtedly, Aizen hadn't been bothering to be very gentle with him. Was the man torturing him for information? Or just for the fun of it? Or was he doing something...much worse?

Maybe it was seeing Aizen's smug, triumphant, godly smile. Maybe it was seeing the way the bastard treated his precious ice prince with no mercy, no regard, and no dignity. Or maybe it was the look on Hitsugaya's face that clearly read that he was in trouble - and that he neede help, _badly_.

One thing was for sure - Ichigo had failed.

And that was a fact that he was painfully aware of at the moment.

He had gone to Hueco Mundo, fully confident that he would save Hitsugaya, sweep him off his feet, and bring him to safety. He would get in there, get the boy, and get out. It would have been simple, fast, and efficient.

Coming back to Soul Society empty-handed had never been part of the plan.

The strawberry stared at the ceiling. He wasn't moving. In fact, for the last day, he had barely moved at all.

The sotaichou had been patient - and perhaps even sympathetic - enough to let him stay in the first division office for a while. And he had spent most of this time sulking, mentally scolding himself for his own weakness, and sometimes these verbal assaults upon himself would even be spoken aloud with much conviction until someone would tell him to shut up and keep his voice down.

He turned back around and stared back towards the room's front.

The screen they had been using for the video conference was painfully black and blank.

Ichigo let out an audible sigh, earning a reproachful glare from the first division fukutaichou. Ichigo looked back at him, but didn't appear the least bit sorry for his noisiness. He knew he was probably acting like a spoiled little kid right now, but for good reason.

For god's sake, he had left the one boy he was completely in love with to die in Hueco Mundo. He had been forced to abandon him and surrender him to Aizen's filthy clutches.

And there was another thing to consider.

He remembered Hitsugaya's last words from the video conference before he had been taken away.

_"Kurosaki, I'm so sorry...I love-..."_

What had he meant to say? _I love...?_ Love what? Love who? If only Aizen had let him finish the sentence.

If only he had been strong enough to save him. If only he hadn't let Aizen get away with him. If only he had stopped Aizen from taking him to the palace of Las Noches during that fateful suicide mission in the first place. If only this could have never happened.

Ichigo's mind was full of "if only" scenarios now, and he couldn't help but wonder if what Urahara had told him in his shop prior to his departure to Hueco Mundo was true. Had Hitsugaya's emotions really been a state of disarray when the strawberry had confessed his feelings to him? So if he had not have had the mission to worry about, what would he have really said to him that day? What exactly were the tenth division captain's feelings in regards to him?

There were so many unanswered questions, and it only frustrated Ichigo more and more.

Yamamoto had promised that they would try to save Hitsugaya again when "the time was right," or something to that effect.

Ichigo didn't know when that time would be.

But he knew that when it finally came, he would do everything in his power to kill Aizen and bring Hitsugaya back to his side.

* * *

Since it was always night in Las Noches, Hitsugaya had a hard time keeping track of the time - or what little of it was left.

It was maddening, the way Aizen left him locked in the throne room which would be eerily deserted when the three traitors and the Arrancar retired to bed. He spent these nights alone, cold, and longing for some kind of warmth.

During these times, he would often think of Kurosaki Ichigo.

The child prodigy let out a soft sigh, that, despite its low volume, seemed to echo all throughout the empty room. He remembered Ichigo telling him that he had feelings for him. Hitsugaya had to admit, that he, too, felt something a little beyond a plain friendly relationship when he was with the strawberry. And there was the fact that he had come to Hueco Mundo to save him. He hadn't been successful, but the point was that he had _tried_, even after Hitsugaya had been sure to turn him down in the coldest way he could bring himself to.

When they had been at the video conference, Hitsugaya had suddenly been overcome with the urge to be honest with Ichigo and tell him about the feelings he had been unable to return that day he had recieved his orders to go to Hueco Mundo. He wanted to tell him that he was sorry for causing him so much trouble, and that he - despite everything - really _did_ love him back.

Aizen hadn't let him say what he had wanted to, and that was the frustrating part.

He the feeling that it would be the last time he'd see him outside the battlefield. He had to let him know. But he had been unable to, and he had failed in this aspect. Hitsugaya hated himself for being so dishonest with Ichigo. He should have just told him how he felt before he had gone to Hueco Mundo. Now, it might be too late, and he might never be able to tell the strawberry he had been lying when he had told him he didn't feel anything for him.

Soul Society was to be attacked the next morning, and Ichigo would die.

Aizen was man of no sympathy. The man knew that Hitsugaya was well aware of the fact that he would be sure to make the subsitute shinigami suffer, and then cruelly take his life for the fun of it.

There was absolutely nothing Hitsugaya could do about it. Here, chained up in this throne room, he was completely powerless to stop it from happening.

Or maybe he wasn't.

Hitsugaya wasn't sure why he suddenly felt this way. He had given up trying to change his fate in Hueco Mundo. But now, things were different. If only he could somehow get himself out of this room, and if only he could somehow communicate...

Then, it hit him.

_Video conference_.

He had to let Soul Society know. He had to let Ichigo know.

If he could do it, then Aizen would no longer have the element of surprise on his side, and the Gotei 13 would have ample time to mobilize and ready themselves to meet Aizen in battle. And it would also be plenty of time for Ichigo to get to safety.

Determined, the young captain looked at the chains that held him by the wrists to the wall. There was nothing special about them; no reaitsu sealing was in use. They were just normal - although heavy - pieces of metal. Aizen probably knew there was no need to bother because the prodigy had seemingly given up and wouldn't try to escape. Fortunately he hadn't been planning on a change in attitude.

Under his breath, he quietly muttered the incantation to a kido spell. A bright light glimmered against the metal of the chains, and then there was the grating sound of metal being cut - but it wasn't enough.

His heart was pounding. He knew Aizen wasn't stupid. He would be able to figure out that he had escaped in no time. He had to hurry.

He had to try it again.

Hitsugaya sucked in his breath and whispered the words to the same kido spell again. Another flash of light, and chains clattered noisily to the floor.

His left hand was free. As quickly as he could, he performed the same procedure to the chains holding his right hand, which also fell quite loudly to the ground, the sound echoing at a greater volume than he had anticipated.

If the energy of the kido didn't alert someone to his actions, then all the noise he was making would.

Hitsugaya knew he had to hurry.

Time was already running out. Not only for him to complete this task, but also, for Soul Society.


	14. Desperate Determination

Author's Note: Yay, another two-chapter update! I am just on a roll this week, aren't I? Anyway, last chapter was a little on the shorter side, sorry about that. Then again, I noticed that my chapters tend to be a lot shorter than in most other authors' stories, so I'm sorry about that, too. I also went back to reread the fic, and I caught _so many_ typos that I never noticed before, and for some reason, my spell check didn't pick them up. So, again, so sorry about those!

* * *

Hitsugaya cautiously got to his feet, swaying unsteadily. He was tired and weak, and he knew that walking around and about was not a good idea for his body. But now was not the time to worry about that.

He moved towards the door, almost collapsing to the ground. Cursing under his breath, he forced himself to pick up the pace, finally reaching the door, and with a push, managing to swing it open. Thankfully Aizen had not locked it; this was also probably due to the fact that he hadn't been expecting him to try to get out.

The prodigy hurried down the dimly lit hallway, squinting to see through the darkness. He was moving quickly and quietly now, ignoring his body's protests to take it easy.

They didn't call him a genius for nothing. He remembered the way to the room where Aizen had his video conference screen easily, and he was almost there now.

Finally, he saw the door at the end of the hallway, and he rushed forward, disregarding the pain in his chest. He stopped briefly to catch his breath, wondering how he had become so out of shape in just a matter of days. There was something about the palace of Las Noches that seemed to just suck the energy right out of you.

He gave the door a push - it didn't budge. It was locked.

Without hesitating, he raised his hand, quickly whispering the words to another kido spell. His hand glowed red for a moment, before, with a loud explosion, the lock on the door gave way.

His heart was pounding so fast now, he was sure anyone within a mile's radius could hear it. He looked to his left, then to his right, seeing no sign of any Arrancar or someone else coming to see what the commotion was. But he knew there would be soon. Quickly, he ducked inside, hurrying to the room's front and kneeling by the screen.

He hesitated for a moment, wondering how the hell you worked this thing.

Hitsugaya remembered using one of these before in the real world when he had to report back to the sotaichou. But the one Aizen had was quite visibly different. But he couldn't give up now, he'd just have to figure it out.

Biting his lip, he reached gingerly to the control panel, giving one of the buttons a cautious push.

Nothing happened.

He bit down harder and pushed another, and another. The screen flashed once, but other than that, nothing happened. God, who the hell made this piece of crap? He stared at the buttons, his eyes moving down the rows and rows and rows. He reached out, trying again. He placed a finger on another one of the buttons and pushed down.

It turned out to be, thankfully, a lucky guess.

The screen flickered, the static clearing in a matter of moments. He found himself staring at the quite empty-looking first division office.

_Shit_.

"Is...Is anyone there?" he spoke, his voice wavering. This could _not_ be happening. All that trouble he had gone through, all that resolve he had felt to warn Soul Society about Aizen's plans...was it all for nothing?

"Someone...please..."

He was about to get up and leave when he heard a voice coming from the screen.

"T-Toshiro?"

Flaming orange hair and a surprised face appeared, and Hitsugaya couldn't stop himself from smiling. Ichigo had come.

"Kurosaki, I don't have much time," Hitsugaya spoke hurriedly as he watched Ichigo yell for the sotaichou - who was probably somewhere off-screen - to come quickly. Surely enough, the old man appeared promptly, which led Hitsugaya to wonder if either of them had been sleeping at all.

"Hitsugaya-taichou, what is the meaning of this?"

"I'm not supposed to be here right now," Hitsugaya admitted, "But I had to tell you. Aizen...he...He plans to attack Soul Society, first thing tomorrow morning. I'm sorry I was unable to get here earlier...but he's bringing all his Arrancar with him. I'm quite sure that this is meant to be an invasion of sorts. And...and he's after Kurosaki, too..." He turned to Ichigo. "Kurosaki, it's not safe for you in Soul Society. You must leave."

"How do we know we can trust you?" Yamamoto demanded, "How do we know you aren't giving us false information on Aizen's orders?"

"You know me, sotaichou," Hitsugaya answered, "Had I any intention to betray Soul Society, I would have done it long ago."

Hitsugaya suddenly froze, hearing a sound somewhere outside. Footsteps. They seemed to be far off at the moment, but they were coming closer. He had done what he needed to do, now he just had to get the hell out of there.

"Toshiro?" he heard Ichigo say, his face riddled with worry, "Toshiro, are you alright?"

"I'm fine," Hitsugaya whispered, though he obviously was not. "I...I have to go. I'm sorry."

"Toshiro, wait-"

As much as he wanted to hear what Ichigo had to say, Hitsugaya knew he had to leave the room, and he had to do it _now_. Otherwise who knew what would happen. Hurriedly, he pushed the same button he had used to turn the screen on, and the image of Ichigo and the sotaichou faded to static before disappearing completely, leaving the screen blank and black again.

He got to his feet, making a dash for the door, stumbling but regaining balance as he hurried out, closing the door behind him.

Panicked, he ran back towards the the direction of the throne room. If he could somehow make it back there before he was found, perhaps it would appear as if he had only just escaped not too long ago.

The white-haired boy scrambled inside, closing the throne room doors behind him as he entered.

He stopped to regain his breath, panting softly. He coughed, but slowly, he could feel his heartbeat returning to normal. He exhaled in relief.

Suddenly, just as he began to calm down, he felt a large hand seemingly out of nowhere reach out and grab him by the wrist. Startled and horrified, he nearly screamed, but the air caught in his throat as he felt the other hand wrap around his throat, pulling him back against the body of the owner of these hands. He felt his captor twisting his arm behind his back, and he gasped for the air he was not getting.

"Welcome back, Hitsugaya-kun," came the cold, amused voice, and the prodigy's heart froze. Aizen.

"What were you doing, sneaking off in the middle of the night like that?" Aizen inquired calmly as Hitsugaya struggled for breath, "Taking a midnight stroll, perhaps? Don't you know it's dangerous to be wandering about alone in the dark here in Las Noches...especially for someone as pretty as you? Someone could...try to take advantage of you," he finished in a low whisper by the terrified boy's ear, the affection in his voice so fake and mocking that it was beyond disgusting.

"Let go of me..." Hitsugaya gasped, and with a chuckle, Aizen complied, giving the boy a hard shove and watching him topple to the floor.

"I'm disappointed in you, Hitsugaya-kun," the traitor spoke as Hitsugaya coughed on the floor, "And here I thought that you might finally be learning to behave. Tell me, where did you plan on going?"

"None of your business," Hitsugaya spat.

Aizen raised an eyebrow as he knelt next to the young captain, reaching out and turning his face towards him with his hand, forcing the boy to look him in the eyes. "None of my business, you say? You forget, Hitsugaya-kun, that you _belong_ to me now, and it most certainly _is_ my business."

Hitsugaya pulled away. "Don't touch me."

The ex-captain of the fifth division's brow arched even higher and a cold, grim smile appeared on his lips. Without warning, he suddenly struck Hitsugaya across the face, a short gasp of pain falling from the boy's lips. The sound of the blow's impact seemed to echo menacingly through the dark room.

"Enough of your attitude," Aizen spoke in a dangerously soft voice, "Where were you going?"

"I don't remember," Hitsugaya snapped. It was a beyond obvious lie, but he didn't care. Either way he was not going to tell him a word.

"Don't play coy with me," Aizen snarled, seizing Hitsugaya by the front of his robes, "I'm becoming impatient with you, Hitsugaya-kun." He grasped a fistful of the snow-white locks, jerking him roughly to his feet, drawing out a cry of pain from the boy. "Answer me."

Hitsugaya shook his head stubbornly.

"I don't answer to traitors."

This seemed to be the last straw for Aizen. His hand went to Kyoka Suigetsu as he unsheathed the sword, slashing the blade across the boy's chest in a sudden, swift, and unexpected movement. Hitsugaya gasped as pain seemed to explode across the upper portion of his body. He dropped to his knees, his hands grasping pitifully at the bleeding gash, blood seeping through his tattered kimono and onto his trembling hands. It wasn't a cut deep enough to cause him any fatal damage, but it was enough to send pain shooting through his whole body at the slightest movement.

"You're lucky I need you to be in good condition for tomorrow," Aizen spat, "Otherwise I could have done something much more entertaining."

"Bastard," Hitsugaya gasped out, coughing.

"I expect you to obey me fully tomorrow morning," Aizen ordered, "After Soul Society is mine, I will have no more use for you. I am tired of your disobedience, and tomorrow, after I am done with my business, you can die with your precious Kurosaki Ichigo."

With that, he left the room, leaving Hitsugaya bleeding and crying softly on the floor.


	15. Hanging on the Edge

Author's Note: So as you can see, we are already on Chapter 15. For those of you who have been reading my stories for a while, I guess you would have figured out by now that it will end at twenty. So that means we have only five chapters left until the super-epic ending! Yeah! Okay, maybe not super-epic, but you get the point. Anyway, reviews are loved and they're my only fuel to keep updating. Thanks!

* * *

Soul Society was currently in an uproar.

Since having received Hitsugaya's warning, the sotaichou had decided to take his word for it and had called a captains' meeting to alert all the high-ranking officers that Soul Society was now in a state of emergency and preparations had to be taken for Aizen's impending attack.

Now, troops were being mobilized, last-minute training was going on, and orders were being dispatched all over the place.

In short, it was organized chaos - if there was actually such a thing.

For the last few hours, Ichigo had been just sitting in the first division office, doing...well, nothing. He should have been preparing for the inevitable battle, but oddly, he felt as ready as he would ever be already. He knew what he had to do and he told himself that he, this time, would most definitely _not_ fail. If he did, the consequences would be unspeakable.

He looked out the window, watching the sky. It was a shade of deep blue tinged slightly with a touch of orange, hinting that the sun would soon rise. According to Hitsugaya, Aizen would attack as soon as the sun rose.

And by the looks of it, there was little more than an hour left.

Ichigo rose from his seat, quietly exiting the office, Zangetsu over his shoulder. Outside, shinigami were running back and forth, making last-minute preparations. Most of the captains already seemed pretty much good to go.

"Kurosaki Ichigo."

Hearing his name, the strawberry turned, not surprised to see Yamamoto behind him, fukutaichou at his side as usual.

"Yeah?"

The sotaichou gave Ichigo a very sage look. "I, as well as the rest of the Gotei 13, will be occupied enough with defending against Aizen and his Arrancar army. Thus, I trust that I would not be wrong to place the task of retrieving and protecting Hitsugaya-taichou in your hands."

Ichigo nodded.

"I won't disappoint you...or Toshiro himself, for that matter."

"Good," Yamamoto answered, "We are convening atop Sokyoku Hill. In a few moments, I expect Aizen and his men to arrive. You know what to do."

With another nod, the strawberry followed the old man towards the hill, wondering vaguely to himself why everything big in Soul Society happened to occur in that area. They reached their destination shortly, thanks to the use of shunpo.

When Ichigo, the sotaichou, and his fukutaichou reached the hill, most of the other divisions were already present and ready to fight.

As they looked to the horizon, the sun slowly, but surely, began to rise over the Seireitei, the rays of light casting long shadows across the surface of the earth. It was completely silent as all shinigami waited, hands ready to draw their weapons. Some of them looked determined, and some of the eleventh division members looked excited. But the most common emotion he saw was fear. Many of the shinigami were going to be torn to pieces today, and they were all aware of that fact.

Then, he felt it.

A crushing reiatsu. Or rather, what seemed like a whole army of many individual reiatsu.

Silhouetted against the rising sun, he could make out the form of a few figures in the distance. As the figures got closer, they seemed to multiply. A few turned into ten, ten turned into what looked to be at least a hundred, if not more.

The strawberry sucked in his breath. They were coming closer, closer, closer still...

He saw the bloodthirsty expressions of the Arrancar. He saw Tosen's stoic face. He saw Ichimaru's fox-like grin. He saw Aizen's triumphant smile.

And then he saw Hitsugaya's terrified eyes.

The time was here.

"This is madness," Yamamoto sighed with a shake of the head, "I never thought that one day, Soul Society might come to this state...on the brink of destruction with thousands of lives on the line. It seems that everything, as of now...is hanging on the edge."

Ichigo couldn't agree more.

* * *

Hitsugaya looked downwards.

Since having arrived in Soul Society, he had been made to follow Aizen as they stepped through the sky towards the Seireitei. It was embarassing, really. He was humiliated enough to be in the company of this traitor, but Aizen was pulling the boy along by a chain that had been fastened around the slender wrists. And he was so casual about it, as if he was merely walking a pet dog. Had he been expecting the young captain to try and bolt?

Before he knew it, they were standing over Sokyoku hill, and he felt as if a thousand eyes were glued on him.

But out of these thousands of faces, only one seemed to attract his gaze.

"Kurosaki..."

The strawberry was looking directly at him, and he was looking back with wide eyes. Hesitantly, Hitsugaya tore his gaze away, instead reverting it to the leader of this army from Hueco Mundo, Aizen. The man did not look happy.

"This is odd," Aizen said aloud, in a voice that sounded almost amused, however, "And here I thought I might have the element of surprise on my side to catch the fools in Soul Society off guard...but it appears they knew I was coming. They were prepared." He paused dramatically, looking down at Hitsugaya with a sickening smile. "I daresay a little rat let word about it slip. Do you know, Hitsugaya-kun, who that rat might be?"

Hitsugaya was silent.

The traitor's smile broadened.

"You told them, didn't you?" he asked, his voice deathly soft and sickeningly pleasant. "You warned them."

Hitsugaya opened his mouth to speak, but before he could utter a word, Aizen gave the chains he was leading Hitsugaya by a hard jerk, dragging him forward, and as the soul reapers below watched in mute horror, he gave Hitsugaya a swift, vicious slap across the face that seemed to echo through the whole Seireitei.

"Hitsugaya-taichou!"

Hitsugaya could hear some of his subordinates calling out to him. He could hear the enraged murmur of other captains, asking who the hell Aizen thought he was and why he thought he could do as he pleased.

But only one person took action.

Out of the corner of his eye, he saw a certain orange-haired individual, without waiting for an order to do so, grab Zangetsu and leap upwards towards them, pulling the zanpaku-to from his back.

"Kurosaki...!"

As if following him as their leader instead of the sotaichou, the other soul reapers soon followed suit, and without waiting for Aizen's approval, the Arrancar lunged forward to meet them in battle.

With a scoff, Aizen gave the chains another pull, freeing Hitsugaya before tossing them aside.

"You know what you need to do for me, Hitsugaya-kun," he smiled, "Release that power."

Hitsugaya looked at him briefly, about to refuse, when in a blur of orange and black, another figure came between them. It didn't take a genius to know that it could only be Ichigo, and indeed, the strawberry had not hesitated to swing his weapon instantly at Aizen.

Aizen was equally quick in terms of reaction. He, too, drew his sword, bringing it upwards and parrying the blow before it could make its mark.

"Fancy seeing you again, Ichigo-kun," Aizen chuckled.

"Bastard," Ichigo retorted, pulling Zangetsu back. "I made a promise," he stated stubbornly, "And that promise was to kill you and save Toshiro. I want to keep that promise, and I want to make it fast, so I'm just going to go all out."

"Kurosaki," Hitsugaya began, "Please, you can't fight him. He'll kill you, you should get somewhere safe..."

"Toshiro," Ichigo suddenly spoke, "Back in Hueco Mundo, you went off with Aizen and left me there."

"I was only trying to protect you," Hitsugaya protested, "I swear, it wasn't..."

"I know," Ichigo answered, "I know, and I'll thank you for that. But please, Toshiro...let _me_ protect _you _this time."

"Kurosaki..."

Without another word, Ichigo cried out for his bankai, and with an explosion of spiritual pressure, he could now feel the power and determination flowing through his veins as Zangetsu slimmed in his hands. He brought another hand to his face, letting the hollow mask materialize.

There was no time to waste with the small details.

He was determined to go forward with full power and finish this once and for all.

After all, now, at this moment, when Hitsugaya needed him more than he ever had, everything was hanging on the edge.

And he'd be damned if he let it all fall.


	16. The Battle Begins

Author's Note: Well, I don't have much to say today for this chapter's AN, but I do have one question for readers. After I finish this one, I'm considering picking up off an another one of my dead fics. As of now, I'm thinking _A Royal Pain in the Ass_, but what do you guys think? Which one would you like to see finished? No guarantees, though! Anyway, keep reading and reviewing!

* * *

Hitsugaya watched quietly from the side as Ichigo released his bankai.

Then came the stifling energy of the hollow.

It was a little scary, he had to admit. This was his first time seeing Ichigo like this; with the hollow mask covering his face entirely. This power radiating outwards felt raw and unstable. It didn't seem like a safe idea to him. And the way Ichigo almost seemed like an entirely different person once the mask had appeared made him extremely uncomfortable.

"Kurosaki, you don't need to go that far," Hitsugaya protested, "It's alright. You shouldn't..."

"It's fine, Hitsugaya-kun," Aizen cut him off, "We wouldn't want me getting too bored here, would we?" There was a pause before the traitor reached into the folds of his robes, pulling something out and tossing it to Hitsugaya. "Here. You might want this back."

Hitsugaya stared into his hands. It was Hyorinmaru.

"Of course, I used a special technique to seal your zanpaku-to," Aizen continued on, "So you will be unable to perform shikai - or bankai for that matter - until the power of the heavenly guardian is released for me. That should be more than enough to break the seal."

He then turned to Ichigo, a smile on his face. "Don't waste my time, substitute shinigami," he sneered in a taunting voice, "I have other things to do today, so shall we begin and get this out of the way?"

"Toshiro, stand back," Ichigo stated suddenly, "You might get hurt if you're too close."

"But-"

Before he could finish the sentence, Ichigo shot forward again, slamming Zangetsu against Aizen's blade. This comforted the child prodigy somewhat. At least he was sure that the strawberry knew what he was doing.

Even Aizen looked alarmed for a moment at the substitute shinigami's sudden increase in both speed and power. However, he didn't seem to be having too much trouble keeping up with him and parrying all the blows aimed at him.

Aizen was getting driven back now, and Hitsugaya couldn't help but wonder if Ichigo actually had a chance against him after all.

"Getsuga Tenshou!"

With a swing of the blade, Ichigo sent a black-and-crimson burst of spiritual energy flying off the tip of his katana and towards Aizen, and the sheer volume of the spiritual pressure in the air was enough to force Hitsugaya to cover his face with his sleeve, lest he get hit by the attack, too.

Aizen dodged easily, the attack missing him by a few inches.

"That's an interesting technique, Ichigo-kun," Aizen mused, "But it's very lacking in control. Your spiritual energy is far from being refined, in fact, it's very wild, and untamed and by the looks of it, not even you are sure yourself whether or not you can control it all the way."

"So what?"

There was a smile on the ex-captain of the fifth division's face.

"And it's because of that hollow, isn't it?"

As much as Hitsugaya wanted to help Ichigo at the moment, he knew it would be a foolish decision to. With something as powerful and unstable as the _getsuga tenshou_, it would be difficult to even get near the strawberry.

Ichigo seemed to read his thoughts entirely.

"Toshiro, go help your subordinates," he said in what almost seemed like an order, although his tone of voice was more concerned than authoritative. "They need you. And the further away you are from here, the safer you'll be."

Hitsugaya nodded briefly, clutching Hyorinmaru to his chest as he turned to go.

"Be careful, Kurosaki."

"I know."

The only thing Hitsugaya could do right now to help Ichigo was to do as he said and get as far away as possible. That way, the strawberry wouldn't have to worry about accidentally hurting him, and he wouldn't have to hold back while fighting Aizen. Besides, he was right - his division probably _did_need him at the moment. They had been without his leadership for quite some time now, and he wasn't sure if it was alright to trust Matsumoto to take charge in his place.

He hurried towards where he could see some members of his division fighting some Arrancar. Others were dealing with some lower-level hollows.

The delighted cries of his subordinates surrounded him almost immediately. Their captain had returned to fight with them.

Hitsugaya unsheathed Hyorinmaru, feeling a small amount of relief as he did so. It had been so long since he had last held the sword in his hands, and even though it was sealed and he could not feel the ice dragon's immense power, it still felt nice to be able to fight again, instead of the useless state he had been in back in Hueco Mundo.

Thankfully, his swordsmanship skills had not dulled during that time.

The prodigy was on his feet in an instant, fighting Arrancar blade-to-blade and cutting down hollows at the same time.

It was sad thing, though, killing these Arrancar.

He wasn't stupid. He knew why Aizen didn't mind giving Hyorinmaru back to him so early on.

The Arrancar didn't matter to the man. They were merely his pawns, and they were just here to cut down as many shinigami as possible. He knew that for this invasion of Soul Society, the Arrancar were not the key to it. He knew, unfortunately, that Aizen was beyond confident that the guardian's power alone would be more than enough to finish the job.

But Hitsugaya, by this point, was determined to keep this power sealed tightly away - if he even did possess such a thing.

He wasn't exactly sure how, but he knew that he could not, under any condition, let Aizen have it.

The Arrancar were not attacking him, and he assumed this was on Aizen's orders. After all, if he died, then there would be no power to release. This didn't stop him from continuing to fight, however, as these Arrancar did not show any such mercy to his subordinates, and he knew that he needed to protect them now, of all times, after having been gone for so long.

Soul Society was doing fairly well in the fight, which was a good sign.

Nearby, Matsumoto seemed to be doing a good job taking down several hollows in one go thanks to Haineko, and the sotaichou was easily burning some Arrancar to ashes. Every now and then, however, he would hear the agonized scream of a helpless shinigami being ripped apart, and he was reminded that this was very real, and very serious.

Then, all of a sudden, just as Hitsugaya thought that Soul Society might actually be on the winning side, there was the sound of something splintering into pieces.

He wasn't sure how he had heard it.

In the midst of the battlefield, it was so noisy that you could hardly even hear yourself think through the clang of swords against swords, the shouts of the shinigami, the laughter of the Arrancar, and the sound of buildings crumbling.

But this noise, more than any other, stood out to Hitsugaya.

And he knew, with dread slowly filling his chest, that this noise was a bad sign.

He looked upwards into the sky, his eyes searching frantically for Ichigo and Aizen.

Briefly, his eyes finally locked on the pair - but they were no longer fighting. Aizen seemed relatively unscathed, and his clothes still seemed to be in almost mint condition. Ichigo, on the other hand, looked to be exhausted, and he was bleeding - not heavily, thankfully, but he was still injured nonetheless.

Hitsugaya's heart turned to ice as he realized what Aizen was doing.

His eyes widened to the size of saucers, and he opened his mouth as if to call out to the substitute shinigami, but no sound came out. His grip around Hyorinmaru tightened. Somewhere behind him, one of his subordinates was beheaded, and his blood splattered messily on the prodigy's garments, but he hardly took notice.

With his bare hands and a smile wide enough to rival even Ichimaru's, Aizen was tearing the hollow mask straight off of Ichigo's shocked and bloodstained face.

_"Kurosaki!"_

Horrified, Hitsugaya glanced backwards at his subordinates. He wasn't sure what to do.

Either he stayed with his subordinates, or he went to help Ichigo.

If he stayed, he didn't know what would become of Ichigo. Aizen was a cruel man, and at this rate, he didn't know if Ichigo would be able to fight back without the help of his hollow powers. If he left, then his subordinates might be in trouble.

"Go on, Hitsugaya-taichou!" he heard someone shout.

"Go ahead!" came another voice, then another, and another.

"We'll be fine, taichou!"

"It's alright! We'll take care of things here!"

"Hitsugaya-taichou! Please leave this to us!"

Hitsugaya turned to look at his subordinates, many of which were still fighting with Arrancar and others that were still taking care of hollows. He winced as one of the men that had just spoken was cleaved into two pieces by what seemed to possibly be an Espada.

Reluctantly, he turned back towards Ichigo, looking upwards. Pieces of the mask were falling to earth now, landing softly by his feet.

"I trust that you can all hold out by yourselves for just a little bit," Hitsugaya murmured to the group of subordinates behind him. "I'll be back as soon as I can," he promised.

Then, with Hyorinmaru held tightly in his hands, he hurried off towards Aizen and Ichigo.


	17. Defeat

Author's Note: Thank you all so much for the reviews! Unfortunately, I wasn't able to read any of the reviews from Chapter 14 onwards until this morning. I'm not sure if it was just my computer, or if it was an issue for everyone, but even though it said I had more reviews, the reviews themselves weren't showing up...Oh well, at least everything's back to normal now.

* * *

Ichigo didn't know what was happening.

He only did know three things. One, he was already at full power. Two, he didn't have much time until his hollow mask would shatter into pieces. Three, by the looks of it, he wasn't causing much damage to Aizen at all at the moment.

He couldn't let those facts bother him, though. He had to beat him. He _had _to. If he couldn't, then he knew exactly what would happen - he would die, Soul Society would fall, and Hitsugaya would be trapped with this man forever.

"Something bothering you, Ichigo-kun?" came the taunting voice full of false concern.

"It's none of your business, Aizen," Ichigo shot back with a snarl, raising his blade for another strike.

"It is my business," Aizen answered with a smile. "And anyway, your hollow can't last much longer, can it? I was the one who perfected the process of hollowfication in the first place, so I know exactly how to counter your hollow powers. There's not much point in you continuing to fight now. Surrender to me now, and perhaps I will consider sparing your life."

"Never," Ichigo growled, swinging Zangetsu forward again, intent on slicing Aizen into pieces.

"You don't listen, do you?" Aizen asked impatiently, "You disappoint me, substitute shinigami. I thought, perhaps you may actually be worth fighting, but I see now that I was mistaken." Without another word, he reached out, catching Zangetsu's blade in his bare hands.

With another furious snarl, Ichigo tried to pull the katana free. He did _not_ have time for this.

Out of the corner of his eye, he could see Aizen sheathing Kyoka Suigetsu and then reaching forward, towards his face. What the hell was he doing? What the hell was going on?

"Your time's up, Kurosaki Ichigo."

"Wha-?"

There was a loud crack, and the left side of Ichigo's face felt strangely naked. Then, he saw in Aizen's free hand a fragment of his hollow mask.

_What the hell...!?_

Aizen grinned, slowly and deliberately releasing hold on the mask fragment, letting it fall through the sky and towards the ground. He reached out again, taking hold of the jagged edge and giving it another pull. What remained of the mask cracked dangerously as Aizen tore another piece from its surface.

Ichigo was so shocked, he couldn't move. He could merely stare stupidly at Aizen, his mouth opening and closing. He could feel the presence of the hollow leaving his immediate senses, its power leaving him slowly as Aizen, with his satisfied smile, continued to rip the material away.

_"Kurosaki!"_

As the last remaining piece of his mask disappeared, Ichigo turned at the sound of someone shouting his name. His chocolate eyes widened the slightest as he saw Hitsugaya below them looking up at him, a panicked expression on his horrified face.

"Toshiro..."

"How touching," the traitorous ruler of Hueco Mundo sneered, "It doesn't matter though. You're in no more condition to fight me, Ichigo-kun." He then pointed a finger at the strawberry's chest.

"Bakudo #61...Six Rods Prison of Light."

The next moment, there was a blinding flash of light, and the next thing Ichigo knew, he couldn't move. He was trapped by a set of glowing beams of light, encircling his body in some grotesque kind of frame.

"You bastard! What the hell are you trying to do!?" the strawberry shouted, squirming, but to no avail. He was completely immobile.

"You should know by now, Kurosaki Ichigo, how I create my Arrancar soldiers," Aizen began, reaching into the folds of his robes and producing a small object that fit neatly into the palm of his hand. "I use this, the Hogyoku. Likewise, I can also use it to demote unruly Arrancar, or Arrancar who have proven themselves to be more of a burden to me than of good use and transform them back into hollows."

"So what?" Ichigo snarled, "What does this have to do with anything?"

"Similarly," the man went on as if Ichigo hadn't spoken at all, "As I already told you, I was the one who created and perfected the process of hollowfication, a process that you have undergone some time ago. With the Hogyoku, I can also reverse the effects of hollowfication if I so wish."

It didn't take a genius to figure out just what it was Aizen intended to do.

"There are so many things I can do to you. I could kill you right now if I wanted to, but now is not the time for that. Instead, I'll just make this easier for myself...and strip you of your hollow powers."

"Son of a bitch."

The smile on his face widening, Aizen reached downwards, holding the Hogyoku in front of Ichigo's forehead. With an angry growl, the strawberry tried again to free himself from the kido that was trapping him in place, but again, it was of no use.

"Now then, Kurosaki Ichigo...let's have some fun."

The Hogyoku began to glow, and Ichigo's eyes widened in panic.

As the glow intensified, he felt almost as if he was being swallowed by that painfully bright light. Slowly, it was engulfing him, numbing his senses, draining his mind of all thoughts.

Then, he felt it.

A searing, blinding pain exploded through his mind, rapidly spreading through his whole body. The light was now so bright, it felt like his whole mind was on fire and being burned to ashes. He felt like screaming, but his throat was dry and no sound came out. He was choking now, and he could feel a mix of blood and vomit surging upwards into his mouth. He was drowning in Aizen's devilishly delighted smile, the searing light, and the excruciating pain. It was like his soul was being torn in half, and he could hear the agonized shrieks of his hollow in the back of his mind, nearly deafening him.

_"Stop it!"_

Ichigo could barely see or hear anything, his senses were fogged by the pain.

But the white hair, the emerald eyes...they were painfully clear to him. He could see Hitsugaya running forward, grabbing Aizen by the arm, trying to wrench the Hogyoku away. The pain lessened slightly for a moment, but returned at full force.

"Aizen, stop!"

He could hear Hitsugaya screaming now, desperately, trying with all his might to stop Aizen from continuing this cruel process. His efforts did not get very far, though, as a moment later, two Arrancar appeared, grabbing the boy by the arms and pulling him away.

"How nice of you to join us, Hitsugaya-kun," Aizen laughed, "I'm sure your presence will please Ichigo-kun immensely."

"Stop," Hitsugaya pleaded frantically, "Please, Aizen, stop this...I'm begging you..."

Ichigo choked, his vision obscured by that dreadfully bright light, his throat felt raw now, and he dully registered the slick wetness of blood running past his parted lips and down his chin. He gasped out, but no words came out. It was getting increasingly hard to breathe, and his whole body was aflame with unimaginable pain, like thousands of little daggers stabbing into his head and carving his insides out.

"To...shi..." He choked out, unable to call out to his precious ice prince.

"Aizen, _please,_" he could hear Hitsugaya continue to beg now, and he could vaguely see him struggling in the grip of the Arrancar restraining him, "Please don't hurt him anymore..." Barely, just barely, he could see tears streaming down the horrified young captain's face.

"As much as I would just _love _to grant your requests, Hitsugaya-kun," Aizen answered in a sickeningly sweet and affectionate voice, "You know I can't stop the de-hollowfication process once it has begun. All you can do know is watch your precious Kurosaki Ichigo suffer."

"Kurosaki...Kurosaki..."

Ichigo could hear Hitsugaya saying his name now, his voice trembling but firm. Even through the burning pain, this simple and small gesture was enough to comfort him somewhat. He opened his mouth, longing to answer, but could barely even form a complete word or sentence.

"Toshi...ro..."

The pain was increasing now, like something was splitting him in half. He would have screamed from the sheer volume of pain, but again, barely any sound could make it past his parched lips. He could only writhe in pure agony, the pain shooting through his whole body.

Hitsugaya turned his head away, unable to watch anymore, sobbing softly.

And finally, after what seemed like an eternity, the pain slowly seemed to die away. The shrieks of his hollow faded, and with a satisfied smile, Aizen placed the Hogyoku back into his robes. The kido holding the strawberry in place disintegrated, and the light slowly disappeared.

Panting, feeling drained of energy and frighteningly weak, Ichigo slumped forward, collapsing in a heap before plummeting from the sky towards the earth.

_"Kurosaki!"_

Hitsugaya struggled wildly in the grip of the Arrancar, watching as the helpless substitute shinigami slammed into the ground below. His panicked gaze moved towards Aizen, and he was so horrified that anyone would do such a thing to another person that he couldn't even find an insult to throw at the man.

"I have other things to attend to. You may let Hitsugaya-kun go now," Aizen ordered, and the Arrancar promptly released him.

As the man turned away and headed off in the direction of the sotaichou, Hitsugaya flash-stepped to Ichigo's side, reaching the motionless teen in a matter of seconds, thanks to the increased speed that shunpo gave him.

The prodigy knelt by Ichigo, placing a hand to his temple to feel for a pulse. Thankfully, he could feel it still going. A little weakly, but it was there.

"Kurosaki..."

Slowly, Ichigo forced himself upwards onto his knees, barely having enough energy or strength to hold this position. He looked at Hitsugaya with remorseful chocolate eyes. He hadn't been able to beat Aizen or save anyone. The strawberry knew he had failed him.

"Toshiro...I...I'm so sorry..."

"No," Hitsugaya whispered, "You have nothing to apologize for."

"I do," Ichigo answered, his voice hoarse and dangerously weak, "If only...If only I had more power..."

_More power...?_

Hitsugaya's eyes lit up for a moment before the gleam in the emerald irises simmered into pure determination. He knew what he had to do now. There was only one thing left he could do to help Ichigo, and he knew exactly what it was.

"That's right," he murmured, "More power...Kurosaki...I can give you mine."

"What?" Ichigo stared back at Hitsugaya, confused. "Toshiro, what do you mean by that? Give me your power? Can you really do something like that?" He thought about the time Rukia gave him her powers, and the thought of Hitsugaya getting in trouble for that bothered him.

Hitsugaya nodded. "I can."

"Toshiro, you don't have to...Won't you get in trouble?"

The snow-haired boy shook his head stubbornly. "No, this is different."

"Different?"

Slowly, the petite captain raised himself on his knees so that he was now eye-to-eye with Ichigo. He hesitated for a moment, breathing softly. He gulped, wondering how the strawberry would react to what he was about to do. And he wasn't even sure whether or not it would really work. But there was no time for those kinds of thoughts now. He had to do it. It was now or never, do or die.

Hitsugaya closed his eyes tightly, reached outwards, and placed his hands on the sides of Ichigo's shocked face before kissing him deeply on the lips.


	18. Release

Author's Note: Oh my, I was updating faster than I realized, and now, we're already on Chapter 18! Only two left to go after this one, and this fic will be all done! Also, thanks for your feedback about my question on which fic I should revive next. I decided to do _A Royal Pain in the Ass_, and since there was only one chapter left for it, write the ending for _Shattered Ice_ as well. So look forward to those in the near future!

* * *

As soon as their lips met, the first thing that came to Ichigo's mind was something along the lines of, _What the hell?_

It had been so sudden and so unexpected - what was going on? What had Hitsugaya kissed him for? Not that he minded, of course, but he was still confused as to exactly why this was happening. Before he could react, the young captain quickly pulled away, his face flushed a pretty pink.

"Toshiro, I-"

Before he could finish the sentence, the sky seemed to explode.

Alarmed, Ichigo looked upwards at the sky, confusion and shock flashing across his mind again. The formerly blue sky was rapidly being swallowed as dark clouds rushed forward, swirling above them in a rapid, circular motion.

Hitsugaya didn't look very surprised, however, although somewhat curious. The sky was now completely gray with the clouds, and much to the strawberry's surprise, a single snowflake slowly drifted downwards, slowly in a lazy spiral pattern. It was one of the strangest snowflakes Ichigo had ever seen before; it seemed to be in the shape of a four-pointed star which reminded the strawberry vaguely of Hyorinmaru's hilt and it was glowing with some strange sort of light. Finally, it landed softly on Hitsugaya's hand.

As soon as the snowflake touched Hitsugaya's skin, the boy's eyes went wide for a moment, before, without warning, he slumped forward, suddenly unconcious.

"T-Toshiro! What's wrong!?"

Confused, Ichigo's arms shot out to catch him, holding his body tightly in his arms. What was happening?

_"Kurosaki Ichigo."_

The substitute shinigami blinked, even more confused and bewildered now. Someone was calling to him. A deep, rumbling, yet chilling voice - it took him a moment to realize that this voice belonged to Hyorinmaru. His grip around Hitsugaya's body tightened. What was going on?

_"Kurosaki Ichigo...come to me."_

"What? What do you mean? How do I...?"

His questions seemed to be answered, as the next thing he saw was a blinding flash of light. Then he felt as if he was being engulfed in a bitter chill that he had never felt before. It was harsh and biting, but oddly enough, something in him knew that it would not harm him.

The light disappated, and Ichigo blinked.

He was on a plain of ice.

He looked around, seeing nothing but a wide, seemingly endless expanse of glacial landscape. The ground was covered entirely with a coat of thin ice and pure white snow, and a frosty wind wrapped itself around him for a moment before blowing off on its way.

"Where am I?" he wondered aloud.

"Kurosaki..."

Ichigo turned at the sound of his name and the familiar voice. He saw Hitsugaya standing there, dressed completely in white. Behind the child prodigy was a large dragon of ice with glowing red eyes, which he assumed to be Hyorinmaru.

"Toshiro? What's happening?"

"I'm not sure," Hitsugaya admitted, "But I think you're here for a reason." He nodded to Hyorinmaru, who slithered towards Ichigo in a fluid, serpentine motion, flexing its wings gracefully. Startled, Ichigo took a step back.

"He won't hurt you," Hitsugaya spoke calmly, and comforted by this, Ichigo let the dragon approach him.

It seemed to be observing him, looking him up and down and all over, its frosty breath sending chills down his spine. Finally, the dragon drew its great neck back for a moment, before stooping downwards in what looked strangely like a bow.

_"Your highness."_

"You...Are you talking to me?" Ichigo spluttered in bewilderment.

Hyorinmaru nodded.

_"My master has finally been able to find you after centuries of searching, Kurosaki Ichigo,"_ it continued, _"In order to show you my eternal gratitude, I will, with all my ability, grant you the power of the heavens."_

"Powers? What powers? What are you talking about?"

_"You already know, your highness."_

Still confused, Ichigo turned to Hitsugaya as if to ask for answers. He didn't know what the dragon meant by saying his master had been searching for centuries, or what he meant by needing to show gratitude. And the power of the heavens? What was that supposed to mean?

Suddenly, it hit him - what Urahara had told him days ago, back in his shop.

_**...It is said that this guardian possesses incredible power that could turn entire dimensions to ice and wipe them out in the blink of an eye. If you have this power on your side, think of how invincible you could become. All you need to know is how to get the guardian to use this power – that is, for the little guardian to receive a kiss on the lips from a so-called 'true love,' that is, the incarnation of his former lover…**_

"N-No," the strawberry murmured, "It can't be...You've got to be mistaken...I'm not good enough for this..."

Hyorinmaru gave Ichigo a curious look. _"Do not doubt yourself, Kurosaki Ichigo."_

"But-"

Before Ichigo could protest, Hyorinmaru cut him off.

_"The two of you must return to Soul Society now. You are needed there."_

Ichigo opened his mouth again, about to speak, but before he could, the flash of light returned, engulfing the icy plain. He saw nothing but this light for a few moments before finally, when he opened his eyes, he was on the solid ground again, back in Soul Society.

Hitsugaya was still in his arms, the same position that they had been in before their little visit to what was probably the white-haired boy's inner world.

By now, the snow was falling heavily, and he could hear the confused shouts of both shinigami and Arrancar alike.

"Toshiro?" Gently, Ichigo gave the boy a small shake. With a moan, the dark lashes fluttered open, the emerald eyes coming into view again. Hitsugaya looked at Ichigo for a moment before slowly pulling himself out of his arms.

"What's happening?" Ichigo whispered, as a bolt of lightning sliced through the snow and clouds, striking the earth with a deafening roar. The wind was picking up now, whipping the snow about in the air, almost like a blizzard.

"The power of the heavenly guardian," Hitsugaya answered quietly. He reached behind his back, taking his zanpaku-to and holding it out to Ichigo.

Ichigo stared at it dumbly.

"Take it," Hitsugaya insisted.

"No, I can't," Ichigo answered, still confused, "It's your zanpaku-to, isn't it? How could I...weild it?"

"Only you can fight with Hyorinmaru now," Hitsugaya insisted, still holding it out to the strawberry, "I know it. And you must. You don't have the help of your hollow anymore, but now you have Hyorinmaru's. There's no way you can fight Aizen without it."

"What makes you so sure?"

"I just know," Hitsugaya answered firmly, "I _am_ the heavenly guardian, after all. So it seems, anyway. I know exactly who is meant to take my power for his own, and I know it's you."

Uncertainly, Ichigo reached out, taking the zanpaku-to in his hands. It felt strange, as if some new power was flowing through his veins as he took Hyorinmaru. He suddenly felt strangely sure of himself as he held it. He wasn't sure if it would work, but they would never know until he tried.

"Are you sure I can use this?"

"Positive," Hitsugaya replied as-a-matter-of-factly, "However, there are two conditions. One, the heavenly guardian - me, in other words - must be present in order for the power to continue to exist. If I die, the power dies, too. Two, the power outlasts its weilder. If the weilder - in this case, you - dies, then it will be passed on to the one who defeated him."

"And once I'm done, how do I get it to stop?" Ichigo asked.

"Only heaven decides."

"How do you know all this?"

"Because I do."

"So, if I was able to release your power," Ichigo began, "...Then it means I'm your...'true love'...right?"

Hitsugaya gave him an angry glare, a blush springing to his face. "Shut up," the tenth-division captain snapped heatedly, crossing his arms over his chest, "Whatever, Kurosaki, just go defeat Aizen and get it over with."

A grin spread across Ichigo's lips as he stood, Hyorinmaru in his hand.

"Just wait," he answered, ruffling Hitsugaya's snow-white locks affectionately. "This time, I definetely will."


	19. Falling Snow

Author's Note: Yes, we're on Chapter 19 already! Which means next chapter will be the last! This one will have most of the action, and it'll be a little longer. The next will be more of a conclusion to smoothen things out and tie up some loose ends. Hopefully this fic has been turning out okay for you, it was actually pretty difficult for me to write. Sorry I didn't post this until now, I bet you were expecting a fast update, but I actually got a mild case of writer's block and didn't know how to continue until now. I didn't really like this chapter though, to me it just seemed like Ichigo going on a warpath and wrecking everything the whole time. But thanks to all who are still reading and reviewing.

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Ichigo held Hyorinmaru in his hands. It felt strange, and he didn't know how to explain it, but somehow, he felt as if Hitsugaya was right. But now was not the time for questions or doubts. This was his once chance to defeat Aizen, and if Hyorinmaru would be his weapon, then so be it.

"Kurosaki, be careful," Hitsugaya warned, "Even if you do have this power, you are not invincible."

"I know," Ichigo answered quietly. There was an awkward pause before with an uncomfortable laugh, the strawberry added, "Thanks, Toshiro."

"Don't thank me," Hitsugaya snapped, "Hurry up and do what you came to do."

"You'll be fine without your zanpaku-to, right?"

"Of course I will," the young captain retorted, "Who do you think I am? I may not have Hyorinmaru, but I am still a captain of the Gotei 13 nonetheless, and I am well-versed enough in kido to defend myself without it."

"Stay here and wait for me," Ichigo instructed, "I'll be done soon, I promise."

"Done with what, I wonder?"

Both boys spun around at the sound of the third voice interjecting into their conversation. Ichigo's grip around Hyorinmaru tightened as his eyes rested on the owner of this voice, Aizen. The man smiled graciously at the pair, his hand resting on Kyoka Suigetsu.

"I was in the middle of destroying your precious sotaichou when I noticed the change in the atmosphere," Aizen spoke, "So I came as quickly as possible, knowing that the power of the guardian has indeed been released. Thank you for your help, Hitsugaya-kun. Now then, Kurosaki Ichigo, as you may or may not know, the whole point of this was for _me_ to gain this power. I assume you won't willingly hand Hyorinmaru over...so I shall have to kill you to take it from you."

"Like hell you will," Ichigo snarled, "_You're_ the one who's going to die."

"Is that so?" Aizen chuckled, "You never fail to amuse me, Ichigo-kun. Had I not needed that power, perhaps I would have considered sparing your life. You have the potential to be useful to me, but in the long run, I think the guardian's power will help me much more than you ever will."

"Is this the way you like to look at people?" the strawberry shot back, "As if their only purpose is to benefit _you_?"

"Certainly," the traitor answered smoothly, a pleasant smile on his face, "Why do you think I brought Hitsugaya-kun to Las Noches? He may have a pretty face, but I didn't do it for anything beyond my own personal benefit. You still have much to learn, Kurosaki Ichigo. There are only two kinds of people in this world...the used, and the users. I happen to be a user. As for yourself...you're just like me."

"What the hell are you talking about!?" Ichigo snarled, his hands tightening around Hyorinmaru, "I'm not like you!"

"Of course you are," was the even answer, "You were unable to save Hitsugaya-kun. Is your resolve to retrieve him really that weak? You took his power for yourself, for your own usage. You don't really love him, do you, Ichigo-kun?"

Ichigo froze, looking back at Aizen.

He could feel Hitsugaya watching him from behind. He didn't know what to do.

"That's none of your business," he finally snarled, "You don't even know what love _is_."

Aizen laughed as he unsheathed Kyoka Suigetsu. "It doesn't matter now, does it?" Ichigo blinked, and Aizen was gone. Alarmed, the strawberry jumped back just in time for the man to reappear in front of him, swinging Kyoka Suigetsu towards his face. Ichigo was quick to parry the blow, the sound of metal meeting metal echoing throughout the area.

For the first few painful minutes of fighting Aizen, Ichigo came to a conclusion.

He had no idea how the hell he was supposed to use Hyorinmaru.

The dragon was not part of his mind, so it naturally would not obey him. And now that his hollow was gone, he no longer had his power, either. There was only one thing left, and it was_ Zangetsu_. At that moment, Ichigo decided to try something. It was a crazy idea, but it had to work.

_"Getsuga Tenshou!"_

He swung the blade downwards with all his might, and a mixture of ice and black energy exploded from its tip. The force of the attack itself was enough to nearly knock Ichigo himself off balance as the burst of energy flew towards Aizen at such a speed that Ichigo could barely even see it. Even Hitsugaya, who was watching worriedly several feet away, was almost thrown to the ground.

Aizen appeared shocked for a moment, also caught off guard by the sudden attack. Ichigo swung his sword again, releasing another attack, and the next thing he knew, the ground in front of him had been split open, the ground was covered in ice, and Aizen's left arm was now a bleeding stump.

He had no idea what he just did. But it had worked. And the power was incredible. His hands were shaking now. It was too much. He had to finish the fight quickly. Something so strong just couldn't be controlled, and he had the feeling he'd end up destroying more than he intended to if he took too long.

Aizen glared at Ichigo, his remaining hand clutching Kyoka Suigetsu.

"You can't control that power, Ichigo-kun," he hissed. It was a little scary, seeing Aizen like this. His eyes, usually so pleasant and smug, were now filled with an icy rage he had never seen in anyone before. "Give Hyorinmaru to me or you'll end up destroying everything. Soul Society, yourself, me, Hitsugaya-kun..."

"Never," Ichigo retorted angrily, "I'll just get this over with before that happens."

Aizen lunged at him, and Ichigo swung Hyorinmaru forward to meet Kyoka Suigetsu. As the blades touched, there was an explosion of spiritual energy, and Aizen was thrown backwards, blood streaming from his face. Ichigo gave him no quarter and shot forward, slashing at him with the blade. A long, diagonal, bloody gash appeared on Aizen's chest, and with an angry, pained snarl, Aizen flash-stepped backwards.

Ichigo took another swing at him, now entirely on the offensive.

Sparks flew from the blades as Hyorinmaru and Kyoka Suigetsu collided again.

_"Getsuga Tenshou!"_

He released another violent, devastatingly quick blast from the katana. Aizen thrust his own sword upwards to deflect the blow, but the force was enough to send him slamming into the ground, ice crackling on the earth. Dust and dirt exploded from the ground, and as the rubble settled, it became deathly quiet.

Ichigo landed back on the ground, breathing a sigh of Hyorinmaru still in both hands. It was just too destructive. He knew what Urahara had meant now when he had been telling him how dangerous the guardian's power could be if placed in the wrong hands.

But now, it was over. He was done. He had finished what he had came to do.

"Kurosaki!"

Hitsugaya ran towards him, and as he approached, Ichigo immediately took the boy in his arms, holding him close.

"Toshiro..."

They were still for a moment, Hitsugaya clinging to the fabric of Ichigo's bloody shihakusho, and Ichigo with his arms around Hitsugaya.

"Kurosaki...are you alright?" Hitsugaya murmured as he gently pulled himself out of the strawberry's grasp. "Your hands...they're shaking," he noted as he gently touched Ichigo's left hand with his own. "If you had used that power for just a few minutes more, your body could have been seriously damaged."

"I know," Ichigo answered, "But it's over now, isn't it? It'll be okay."

Smiling, Ichigo ruffled Hitsugaya's snow-white locks affectionately, and the petite prodigy's face flushed scarlet in a timid blush.

"K-Kurosaki...There's something I need to tell you," Hitsugaya spoke uncomfortably after clearing his throat, fiddling with the tattered sleeve of his black kimono. He wanted badly to tell Ichigo how he felt about him, and now didn't really seem like an appropriate time, but it didn't matter now.

"I'm listening."

Hitsugaya opened his mouth again to speak. "I...Kurosaki, I..."

His words trailed off as his eyes widened in horror, catching movement from the debris behind them.

_"Kurosaki! Watch out!"_

Ichigo barely even had time to react as horrorstruck, Hitsugaya shoved Ichigo away from him, sending the strawberry toppling to the floor. The next second, there was the sickening sound of a blade tearing through flesh, and crimson blood splattered across the earth. A pained cry split through the commotion, and that was when Ichigo came to a terrible realization.

Aizen was standing over Hitsugaya, Kyoka Suigetsu in his hand. And the blade was sticking clean through Hitsugaya's stomach.

The man, smiling devilishly, twisted the blade slowly and cruelly, and Hitsugaya gasped in pain, his eyes wide.

"The power of the heavenly guardian will disappear along with the guardian itself," Aizen announced, his voice smooth and pleasant. "If I can't have this power for myself...then no one can."

He wrenched the blade free from Hitsugaya's body, more blood splattering onto the ground, staining it scarlet. With a pitiful whimper, the young captain collapsed to the ground in a messy heap of blood and tattered robes.

_"Toshiro!"_

His chocolate eyes wide with panic, Ichigo threw himself forward to Hitsugaya's side, his arms instantly around the fallen prodigy, grabbing tightly onto his hand. He was losing blood, and he was losing it fast. Feeling sick to his stomach, he realized why Aizen had decided to kill the boy. The man knew he would be unable to defeat Ichigo, so long as he had the power of the heavenly guardian in his hands. If he was to kill Hitsugaya, then he would no longer have the power, and it would put him at a disadvantage.

"K-Kurosaki..."

Hitsugaya's breathing was labored now, with his breaths coming out in short, painful gasps. He coughed, and blood trickled downwards from his lips.

The sound of a katana being swung downwards met the strawberry's ears, and Ichigo grabbed Hyorinmaru, letting go of Hitsugaya's hand and whirling around, bringing the sword out in front of him. Kyoka Suigetsu slammed into it, the blades grating harshly against each other. It was apparent that Aizen had intended to attack Ichigo while he was distracted by the dying Hitsugaya from behind.

"You bastard..." the orange-haired teen managed to choke out, "I...I'm going to kill you."

With an infuriated cry, Ichigo pulled Hyorinmaru back and slammed it into Kyoka Suigetsu, driving Aizen a step back. He swung it again and again, intent on cutting Aizen into tiny pieces, each blow being easily parried.

_"Getsuga Tenshou!"_ he screamed, slashing the blade downwards. The wind was picking up now, and ice was being thrown through the air. The sound of thunder shook the air as the sky blackened, the air becoming thick and heavy.

Spiritual energy exploded from the blade of Hyorinmaru, but weaker than the first few times. Ichigo knew, with dread welling in heart, that the guardian's power was fading, along with Hitsugaya's life.

The attack missed its mark, and at the next moment, Aizen was by Ichigo's side. The man brought Kyoka Suigetsu down against him, and Ichigo could feel pain shooting through his chest as the blade cut into him. With an angry growl, the strawberry ignored the pain. This wasn't going to stop him. He was determined. Aizen was going to pay for hurting his precious ice prince. He swung Hyorinmaru at him again, reaching out to grab Aizen by the arm, his grip painfully tight, preventing him from using Kyoka Suigetsu.

"What are you doing!? Let go of me!" Aizen yelled, and for once, Ichigo noted, with grim satisfaction, the man had lost his cool.

"You told me yourself, Aizen..." Ichigo ground out, looking at Aizen directly in the eyes. Chocolate met chocolate. "...That there are two kinds of people in the world, and that I am a user, just like you. And you know what, Aizen? You were right. Except this time...you're the used."

"What are you talking about!?"

"_I'm _going to use _you_ now," the strawberry spat, "...To fulfill the promise I made Toshiro."

"Kurosaki Ichigo, you uncultured, lowly-"

Before he could finish the sentence, Ichigo slammed Hyorinmaru through the man's stomach, just as the traitor had done to Hitsugaya. Aizen choked in pain and shock, blood oozing outwards from his lips and splashing from his body to the ground.

The strawberry grinned smugly.

"You know how it feels now? Being a 'used'? Do you like it, you sick bastard?"

"Why, you little..."

_"Getsuga Tenshou."_

The name of the attack fell from Ichigo's lips for the final time that day, and the blade, which was still lodged in Aizen's abdomen, began to glow until another explosion of spiritual energy burst from its tip.

Aizen's eyes were wide, and he didn't even have time to let out any words beyond and agonized scream as the force of the attack vaporized him, his body dissolving from the inside out into dust.

_Now _it was over. After so many fights, so many nights of worrying, so much bloodshed...it was finally over.

His hands shaking, Ichigo dropped Hyorinmaru to the floor, a metallic clang echoing throughout the eerie silence.

The storm was letting up now, and the clouds slowly began to part and the ice settled. The thick atmosphere loosened, and Ichigo felt something cold falling on his face. It was falling slowly now, onto the ground, gently.

Snow.

Slowly, Ichigo walked towards Hitsugaya's fallen form on the floor. He quietly knelt next to him, taking his body into his arms, holding him to his chest as the snow continued to fall. Hitsugaya looked at him, smiling weakly. He was barely clinging to life now.

"Beautiful, isn't it?" the strawberry whispered, stroking Hitsugaya's hair gently. "...Just like you."

"Kuro...saki..."

Ichigo smiled bitterly. He knew he had only met part of his promise. He had definetely killed Aizen...but he hadn't been able to save Hitsugaya. The boy was dying now, and he knew there was nothing in his power he could to stop it. It was already too late.

"Toshiro," Ichigo murmured, fighting back tears now, "I...I love you. So much."

Hitsugaya nodded weakly.

"Thank you...Kurosaki."

"Don't thank me," the strawberry answered bitterly, "I didn't do anything. I couldn't...couldn't protect you."

As the snow continued to fall, Hitsugaya looked up at Ichigo with clouded emerald eyes. Using the last of his strength, the young prodigy pushed himself upwards and softly pressed his lips against Ichigo's. He wanted to badly to tell Ichigo that he loved him, but he couldn't find his voice. But he assumed that this would tell the strawberry more than any amount of words could.

Tears were streaming down the strawberry's face now as Hitsugaya's painfully cold lips met his own. He tightened his grip around the boy with shaking hands, holding him close. The snow was falling in smaller amounts now. Slowly, but surely, the snowfall was coming to an end.

The small captain weakly sank back into Ichigo's arms. He was barely breathing anymore.

And as the final snowflake drifted noiselessly to the floor, Hitsugaya closed his eyes.

* * *

Author's Note: Don't panic quite yet, guys. Remember, the story's not over yet!


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